mRNA Vaccines? Moderna? Pfizer? WHAT ARE THEY MADE OF?!

Hello Wannabees! It's me, Jana!! Welcome back to yet another blog wherein we’ll be discussing yet another interesting topic. But unlike past blogs, this blog has been written and edited by two new Wannabe Medstudents!! Let me introduce to you... Arshyia (writer) and Aditi (editor)!! On to you guys..

Jana:

Hey guys! I am Arshyia and I am currently and IB1 student, and though many things have changed for me the last couple of months since I started IB , covid is still here. Its been in the market for more than a year and a half but I think we have now gave it a nice punch in its crowns (let me not jinx it) throughh…….VACCINES!

Aditi: Well I don't know about you Arshyia, but when the whole idea of vaccines was introduced to me I was demented in a way to know how can a shot save your freakin’ life?!!!

Arshyia: Well don’t worry if you still don't know or have any doubts, because by the end of this blog (hopefully) y’all would understand how it saves our lives!!!

How do these evolutionary mRNA vaccines work?

The key ingredient is in the name: mRNA or messenger ribonucleic acid. It is a naturally occurring molecule that encodes the instructions for producing proteins. When our cells process mRNA, a part of the cell called the ribosome, translates and follows these instructions in order to build the encoded protein (this is referred to as the CENTRAL DOGMA OF MOLECULAR BIOLOGY). The mRNA vaccines work in exactly the same way, however, scientists use molecules to safely introduce our body to a virus.

First, researchers encode trillions (Aditi: wow!) of mRNA molecules with the instructions for a specific viral protein. This part of the virus is harmless by itself, but helpful for training our body’s immune response. They inject these molecules into a nanoparticle that is almost a thousand times smaller than the normal eukaryotic (plant or animal) cell. This nanoparticle is made up of lipids (fats), the same type of fatty material (phospholipids) that forms the plasma membrane around our cells (phospholipid bilayer). But these lipids have been specially genetically engineered to protect the mRNA on its journey through the body and to assist its entry into the cell through the phospholipid bilayer in the plasma membrane of our eukaryotic animal cells.

Lipids protecting the mRNA be like:

The final ingredients are then added; eg. sugar and salt to allow the nanoparticles to remain intact until they arrive at their desired destination.

Before we use the vaccine, it is kept at temperatures as low as -20 to -80 degrees Celsius to ensure that none of the components break down. Once injected, the lipid coating on each nanoparticle fuses with each phospholipid in the plasma membrane of a cell and releases the mRNA to do its task. At this point, we should note that while we are inputting a viral genetic material into our cells, it’s impossible (to what extent though? IB students inside joke only please) for this material to modify our DNA because our genetic material is stored in chromosomes which is in the nucleus and nothing else can link with our chromosomes as their hydrogen bonds are already all used up. Additionally, because the mRNA is a short-lived molecule that would require additional enzymes and chemical signals to even access our DNA, let alone to alter it. None of these DNA changing components are present in the mRNA vaccine. (Thank God!)

Once inside the cell, the ribosome translates the mRNA instructions and begins assembling the viral protein. In mRNA Covid 19 vaccines, that protein is one of the spike proteins typically found in the virus’ surface. Without the rest of the virus, this spike protein alone is not infectious or damaging to our cells, however, it still does trigger our immune response. Activating the immune system can be quite taxing on the body, resulting in brief fatigue, tiredness, fever, and muscle soreness in some people but this does not mean the recipient is sick. IN FACT... it means the vaccine is working and that the body is producing antibodies to combat that viral protein which will then attach to defend against future Covid-19 infections. Since this particular protein is likely to be found in almost all Covid-19 variants, these antibodies should (should) reduce the threat of catching new variants. This approach offers drastic benefits over pre-existing vaccines.

Traditional vs mRNA Vaccines

Traditional vaccines contain weakened versions of live viruses or severed sections of the virus, both of which require time and intensive research to prepare + unique chemical treatments to safely inject. On the other hand, mRNA vaccines don't actually contain viral particles, so they don’t have to be built from scratch to safely adjust each virus. In fact, every MRNA vaccine could have roughly the same list of ingredients (ain’t that the beauty of mRNA vaccines?). Imagine a reliable and robustly tested Vaccine that can treat disease by swapping out a single component!

To treat new illnesses, researchers identify the correct and matching viral protein, encode this viral protein into the mRNA, and then switch that mRNA into the existing vaccine platform. VOLA!! This could make it possible to develop a new vaccine in WEEKS, providing humanity a flexible and variable new instrument in the never-ending brawl against disease. This ‘’learning and identifying the enemies’’ process is how the immune system figures out how to defeat the actual coronavirus. It remembers what it saw and when you are exposed to the coronavirus in the future it can rapidly mount an effective immune response.

mRNA to corona:

5 Quick Facts About the Covid-19 mRNA Vaccines

1. They cannot give someone covid-19 (obviously as that’s the whole purpose of a vaccine!)

2. They don’t affect or interact with our DNA in any way and doesn’t enter our nucleus

3. The cell breaks down and removes the mRNA soon after it has finished using the instructions in the mRNA

4. The mRNA vaccines have been studied before for the flu, zika, rabies and cytomegalovirus (CMV)

5. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines function by inserting the mRNA into your muscle cells

Jana: Well that was a fun a read! Thank you Arshyia!! I do have one quick question if you don't mind though. How long does mRNA stay effective for?

Arshyia: Great question! From my research, I found that The Infection Disease Society of America (IDSA) predicts that the spike proteins which were generated by Covid-19 vaccines last up to several weeks, like other proteins synthesized in the body. The immune system however, swiftly identifies, attacks and destroys the spike proteins because the immune system recognizes them as something that is not a part of you.

Aditi: Oh nos! looks like I might need to get another shot soon. Anyhows... Thank you guys for reading our blog! I learned so much while editing, so thank you Arshyia! Have a great morning, day, afternoon and night everyone!!