In between DNA and protein, however, is a third class of biomolecules: messenger RNAs (mRNA). While the phrase may be oversimplistic, it captures an important truth about what the genome is: a genetic instruction manual for the synthesis of proteins whose myriad functions provide the foundation of life.Īlmost every biological event and process in your body depends on proteins, and human disease is often the result of a breakdown in the proper functioning of one or more proteins. PMID: 33798667 PMCID: PMC8008785.Every cell in your body contains a copy of your genome-that vast DNA information repository often referred to as the blueprint of life. The dawn of mRNA vaccines: The COVID-19 case. Verbeke R, Lentacker I, De Smedt SC, Dewitte H. Messenger RNA-based vaccines: Past, present, and future directions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Jain S, Venkataraman A, Wechsler ME, Peppas NA. Scientific journal articles for further reading Researchers are studying how mRNA might be used to develop vaccines for additional infectious diseases. These vaccines use mRNA that directs cells to produce copies of a protein on the outside of the coronavirus known as the “spike protein”. Currently vaccines for COVID-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, are the only authorized or approved mRNA vaccines. Like all vaccines in the United States, mRNA vaccines require authorization or approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before they can be used. If a person is exposed to a virus after receiving mRNA vaccination for it, antibodies can quickly recognize it, attach to it, and mark it for destruction before it can cause serious illness. Once produced, antibodies remain in the body, even after the body has rid itself of the pathogen, so that the immune system can quickly respond if exposed again. Antibodies help protect the body against infection by recognizing individual viruses or other pathogens, attaching to them, and marking the pathogens for destruction. As part of a normal immune response, the immune system recognizes that the protein is foreign and produces specialized proteins called antibodies. (Individuals who get an mRNA vaccine are not exposed to the virus, nor can they become infected by the vaccine.) Using this mRNA blueprint, cells produce the viral protein. MRNA vaccines work by introducing a piece of mRNA that corresponds to a viral protein, usually a small piece of a protein found on the virus’s outer membrane. mRNA from vaccines does not enter the nucleus and does not alter DNA. Once cells finish making a protein, they quickly break down the mRNA. In cells, mRNA uses the information in genes to create a blueprint for making proteins. Messenger RNA is a type of RNA that is necessary for protein production. However, scientists have developed a new type of vaccine that uses a molecule called messenger RNA (mRNA) rather than part of an actual bacteria or virus. Most vaccines contain a weakened or dead bacteria or virus. All vaccines introduce into the body a harmless piece of a particular bacteria or virus, triggering an immune response. Vaccines help prevent infection by preparing the body to fight foreign invaders (such as bacteria, viruses, or other pathogens).
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