Washington ? Relief may be on the way for all those youngsters trembling at the thought of another needle jab. One day the flu vaccine may simply be placed under the tongue.

Korean researchers say the new vaccine worked in mice, avoiding not only the painful prick but also the discomfort some people feel from the inhaled vaccine.

The team led by Dr. Mi-Na Kweon of the International Vaccine Institute in Seoul reported their findings in Monday’s online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Better ways of delivering vaccine have long been under study, ranging from orally to inhaled, but all seem to have drawbacks.

Now, Kweon and colleagues say, two doses of influenza vaccine under the tongue of mice primed the animals’ immune system to fight off what would otherwise have been a deadly dose of flu.

Next, they are turning their attention to people, to see if the under-the-tongue vaccine also prompts a strong immune response.

Placing a couple of drops of liquid under the tongue gets the vaccine directly to mucus membranes and prompts a response both in mucus tissues throughout the body as well as in the immune system itself, the researchers said.

Several research efforts applying vaccine to mucus membranes have been tried, seeking to avoid both the needle sticks that people dislike and the harsh environment of the digestive system that can damage or destroy a vaccine. Studies of under-the-tongue of other medicines have also been done.

Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University noted that recent flu studies have involved nasal sprays.

However, he said while he had expected people to be averse to needles, he was surprised to discover that “many people are averse to people messing with their nose … so there are limitations to nasal spray.”

So for researchers looking for another means of doing this, “just a drop under the tongue at least will protect mice … that’s a very exciting and promising line of investigation,” said Schaffner, who was not part of the research team.

And, he added, “if we were faced with a pandemic, the easier and more acceptable we can make the distribution of the vaccine the more rapidly we can protect a proportion of population.”