If you are reading this article, then you are probably staring at a miracle. The “miracle” I am referring to is none other than your computer. It is made up of so many different code sequences to generate the product you are looking for. Consider, then, that the same exact concept used in computers was used to make Pfizer’s and Moderna’s coronavirus vaccines. Who would’ve thought that medicine and computer science would ever converge?
Pfizer and Moderna managed to do something that would have taken more than ten years in just eight months, but how did they do it? To understand how the two companies came up with the idea for their vaccine, we have to take a walk down the history lane. Ever since 1976, when the vaccine for smallpox emerged, an extraordinary technique that is common today developed. Every vaccine builds on the idea that if you give a little piece of the virus, not enough to make the person sick, then the body will be taught to produce antibodies, proteins that allow us to be immune to the virus. But everything changed when Dr. John Weissman stepped in.
Two decades ago, he brought up the question, “What if the body can be taught to make antigens as well as antibodies?” In other words, Dr. John Weissman wanted to figure out if the body can be its own vaccine-producing machine. He wanted to focus on a molecular strand in our body called the mRNA. This messenger RNA is responsible for providing instructions to make whatever protein you want. Dr. Weissman wanted to use the mRNA and build a sequence of genetic code for the protein of interest so that the body can generate a specific antigen. This is an abstract way of thinking and it is much similar to a computer that uses sequences of code to make a product. Believe it or not, this is also the revolutionary technology that allowed Pfizer’s and Moderna’s coronavirus vaccines to be made just in a couple of weeks.
We have finally reached the point where biology has met technology in vaccinations. The vaccine does not necessarily contain the antigen, but it has a genetic code from a portion of the virus, which allows the body to make the antibodies needed to fight it. The particular antigen used from COVID-19 is the spike protein. The reason why the spike protein was specifically used is that it is what allows the virus to get inside the body. By developing antibodies to the spike protein, we can prevent the virus from entering our body.
To put it all together, the vaccine, made up of genetic code, is administered through a shot in the arm. Once the vaccine enters the body, the mRNA starts making spike proteins from the genetic code repeatedly. Remember that the spike proteins cannot hurt us since they are only a small portion of the virus. After a few days, the body starts making antibodies, and we are eventually immune to COVID-19.
In the end, the coronavirus may have been one of our biggest challenges, but it is also one of our biggest triumphs. Thanks to the virus, we were able to create a groundbreaking technology that would significantly decrease the amount of time it takes to make a vaccine and provide a new, interesting way of thinking of medicine. We are some of the luckiest human beings to be alive during this unprecedented time, and we should continue to be proud of ourselves for all the achievements we made and all of the struggles we have persevered through.
Author: Siva Epuri (LHS 9th Grade)
Citation:
“Some Coronavirus Vaccines Are Using New Technology to Help Fight Coronavirus – CNN Video.” CNN, Cable News Network, 23 Nov. 2020, www.cnn.com/videos/health/2020/11/23/vaccine-technology-coronavirus-pfizer-moderna-gupta-newday-vpx.cnn/video/playlists/coronavirus/.
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