Vaccines feel the heat

• Many vaccines today are composed of live viruses modified to trigger an immune response without causing the symptoms of an actual infection.
• Drawback to this 'live-attenuated' vaccine method:
• Refrigeration (4°-8°C) is necessary for the vaccine's effectiveness.
• Costs hundreds of millions of dollars in the developed world.
• Nearly impossible to maintain in delivering vaccines to the developing world where immunizations are most needed
• A new process developed by British scientists (jolly-good old chaps) can keep unrefrigerated vaccines stable for 4 months, even at tropical temperatures.
• If proven to be economically feasible (the key with any new technology), vaccines against tuberculosis, malaria, bird flu, and maybe even HIV could be delivered to those most at risk for contracting the spreading these diseases.

http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/24603/