- Swiss voters reject environment, pensions reforms: projected results
- Israel says 'landed blows' on Hezbollah as Lebanon violence intensifies
- Roma CEO steps down amid anger over club icon De Rossi's sacking
- Incoming French government under pressure on multiple fronts
- Hezbollah rockets strike near Israel's Haifa as UN warns of 'catastrophe'
- Haddad Maia roars back to beat Kasatkina in Korea Open final
- All-rounder Ashwin powers India to 280-run Test win over Bangladesh
- Failed Springbok 'gamble' sets up rugby championship decider
- Lebanon strikes send Israelis to shelters as UN warns of 'catastrophe'
- Far-right AfD eyes new win in east German state vote
- Tony Popovic set to become new Socceroos coach - reports
- All-round Ashwin powers India to big Test win over Bangladesh
- NZ chase 275 to win first Sri Lanka Test after Patel bags six
- Ashwin bags six wickets as India hammer Bangladesh in first Test
- Nascent French government under pressure on multiple fronts
- Angry French cognac makers see red over Chinese tariffs threat
- Protect the prosciutto: Italy battles swine fever
- UN holds 'Summit of the Future' to tackle global crises
- Marxist leader set to become Sri Lanka's next president
- From blades to pull-up bars: UK charity tackles knife crime
- Swiss vote on pensions and environment protections
- No pain, no gain: Chinese pro wrestlers fight for recognition
- UAE leader seeks to deepen 'strategic' ties in US visit during Mideast crisis
- Hezbollah takes heavy hits but still fighting Israel
- Floods, landslides hit central Japan months after major quake
- All Blacks coach Robertson demands better finishing
- Argentina edge South Africa to keep title hopes alive
- Biden says China 'testing us,' in hot mic remarks to Quad allies
- Dubois destroys Joshua to retain IBF world heavyweight crown
- Guardiola says critics want Man City wiped 'from face of the Earth'
- Biden says 'Quad' is 'here to stay' despite challenges
- Dubois knocks out Joshua to retain IBF world heavyweight crown
- Vinicius helps 'faster' Madrid overturn stubborn Espanyol
- Zelensky to press US on long-range missile strikes inside Russia
- PSG drop first points in draw at Reims
- Vinicius, Mbappe on target as Madrid crush plucky Espanyol
- Jeeno leads Ko by two at LPGA Queen City Championship
- Bottega Veneta goes for 'E.T.' chic as Madonna pops into D&G
- Messi, Miami frustrated by New York late leveler
- Musk's X platform takes first step toward lifting Brazil ban
- 'Business as usual' for Australia match-winner Carey amid boos
- Israeli jets pound Lebanon after deadly Beirut strike
- Ten Hag bemoans Man Utd's lack of killer instinct in Palace stalemate
- France's Macron appoints new government in shift to right
- Cheika proud of Leicester grit after winning start as boss
- Profligate Man Utd pay price in 0-0 draw at Palace
- Kane, Olise run riot as Bayern thump Bremen
- Diaz fires Liverpool top of Premier League, Man Utd held at Palace
- LIV champion Rahm out of LIV Team semis with severe flu
- Slot surprised by tearful Nunez's moment of magic
From Covid to cancer: High hopes for Nobel mRNA vaccines
The coronavirus pandemic brought global renown to the mRNA technology that underpins vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, and on Monday earned a Nobel Prize for two scientists who have been key to its development.
Katalin Kariko of Hungary and Drew Weissman of the United States won the Nobel Medicine Prize for their work on "nucleoside base modifications that enabled the development of effective mRNA vaccines against COVID-19".
These types of jabs are new but researchers have been working for decades to try to figure out how to use messenger RNA (ribonucleic acid) for other vaccinations and to treat illnesses from AIDS to cancer.
- How does it work? -
Messenger RNA's job in the body is to help deliver specific instructions from DNA to cells.
In the case of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna jabs, lab-generated mRNA tells human cells to create antigens -- proteins that are similar to ones found in the Covid-19 virus.
Thanks to those antigens, a person's immune system learns how to fight the virus and neutralise Covid if it enters the body.
After the cells create these proteins, the body breaks down the mRNA instructions and gets rid of them.
Such direct communication with cells is revolutionary -- classic vaccines aimed to provoke an immune response by injecting a neutralised form of a virus or antigens into the system.
- Where did this come from? -
The first big breakthrough, in the late 1970s, was in using mRNA to make test-tube cells produce proteins.
A decade later, scientists were able to get the same results in mice, but mRNA still had two major drawbacks as a medical tool.
For one thing, cells in live animals resisted synthetic mRNA, provoking a dangerous immune response.
On top of that, mRNA molecules are fragile, making them difficult to deliver to the system without altering them.
In 2005, Kariko and Weissman of Penn State University published a groundbreaking study showing that a lipid -- or fat molecule -- envelope could safely deliver mRNA without negative effects.
The research caused a buzz in the pharmaceutical community and start-ups dedicated to mRNA therapies began to pop up around the world.
- What else can mRNA do? -
Scientists have worked on developing mRNA jabs for illnesses like seasonal flu, rabies and Zika, as well as those that have remained vaccine-resistant until now, including malaria and AIDS.
Researchers have also started testing personalised treatments on cancer patients, using samples of the proteins in their tumours to create specialised mRNA.
This then triggers the immune system to target specific cancer cells.
"The mRNA platform is versatile," University of Pennsylvania biochemist Norbert Pardi told AFP. "Any protein can be encoded as mRNA so there are many potential applications."
G.Stevens--AMWN