Abstract

Vaccination efforts date back to the 18th century—a time period marked by revolutionary

advancements in science, technology, and preventative medicine. However, vaccine-preventable

diseases remain prevalent both locally and globally despite our efforts. Many posit that this is due to

increased production costs, inefficient vaccine administration or transfer methods, vaccine-associated

adverse effects, and general vaccination non-compliance. Fortunately, we continue to develop

innovative techniques for disease eradication to combat the shortcomings of today’s current

vaccination efforts. This review provides insight into the efficacy and future impact of bioengineered

plant-based vaccinations, otherwise known as oral vaccines (OV). Bridging the gap between the

shortcomings of conventional vaccination methods, OV could serve as an adjunctive method of

disease prevention and address the rising global health inequities. To our knowledge, we are the first

to use our understanding of social determinants of health as a lens for examining the future of OV.

We suggest that lower-income earning countries stand to benefit from OV due to its low production

cost, easy administration and storage, and a high safety profile. While the literature continues to

overwhelmingly suggest that OV could help address the entire global health inequity landscape, this

new and emerging field of biotechnology warrants further research regarding its safety, efficacy, and

future.