mRNA Vaccine

An mRNA vaccine is a type of vaccine that uses a copy of messenger RNA to produce an immune response, delivering antigen-encoding mRNA into cells so that they build a foreign protein normally produced by a pathogen or a cancer cell, which then stimulates an adaptive immune response. The mRNA is delivered by encapsulating it in lipid nanoparticles that protect the RNA strands and help their absorption into cells. Its advantages over traditional vaccines include ease of design, faster and lower-cost production, the induction of both cellular and humoral immunity, and no interaction with the recipient's own genomic DNA. In December 2020, the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 obtained authorization, with the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency becoming the first regulator to approve an mRNA vaccine. In 2023 the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman for their discoveries concerning modified nucleosides that enabled the development of effective mRNA vaccines.