Messenger RNA (mRNA) News and Research

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Determination of the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination using T cell receptor repertoire

A new study published on the bioRxiv preprint server has hypothesized that T cell receptors (TCR) repertoire can measure the response to vaccines, as it would identify the TCR of clones that respond to the vaccination.

13 Dec 2021

An assessment of pH-sensitive cationic lipid nanoparticles for drug delivery

A recent review looks at the molecular design of pH-sensitive cationic lipids and their applications for various tissues and cell types.

7 Dec 2021

Nanoengineers develop a new approach to effectively deliver mRNA into cells

Nanoengineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a new and potentially more effective way to deliver messenger RNA (mRNA) into cells.

30 Nov 2021

Immunity found 6 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection in children

A new study suggests that infection-induced antibodies persist, providing protection for at least six months.

29 Nov 2021

Study shows vaccinated multiple myeloma patients at greater risk of breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infections

Researchers recently published a study assessing the risks of patients with MM to breakthrough infections after completing their vaccination schedule compared to those without any form of cancer.

25 Nov 2021

Study shows neutralizing capacity of monoclonal antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern

Canadian public health researchers recently published a study in the journal Antiviral Research wherein they described generating a panel of murine hybridomas recognizing SARS-CoV-2 spike protein or nucleoprotein, capable of neutralizing the SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, proving their therapeutic potential.

17 Nov 2021

Study: Covid-19 vaccine-elicited immune cells persist six months after vaccination

A recent study by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers provides evidence that CD4+ T lymphocytes — immune system cells also known as helper T cells — produced by people who received either of the two available messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines for COVID-19 persist six months after vaccination at only slightly reduced levels from two weeks after vaccination and are at significantly higher levels than for those who are unvaccinated.

16 Nov 2021

Cell-based viral replication system for screening of SARS-CoV-2 drugs

The current study reports a SARS-CoV-2 replicon system within stable cell lines that can be cultured with ease in a standard biosafety level 2 laboratory.

10 Nov 2021

Finnish study highlights the need for mRNA COVID vaccine booster shots

A register-based cohort study of the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines was performed to help decision-making on providing booster doses to social and healthcare workers (HCWs) like nurses, physicians, dentists, and other professionals in Finland. In addition, it estimated the vaccine effectiveness after the second dose. This study is published on the medRxiv* preprint server.

9 Nov 2021

SARS-CoV-2 Nsp1 deletions affect protein stability and translation inhibition

A new study discusses the purification of various Nsp1 proteins isolated from several mutated variants of SARS-CoV-2.

8 Nov 2021

Researchers explain why decaying SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in blood are not a problem after vaccination

A new study published in the preprint bioRxiv* server suggests vaccination helps to inflate the number of somatic hypermutations acquired by B cells. The increase in somatic hypermutations allows for an accumulation of highly matured bone marrow plasma cells.

8 Nov 2021

“Catching SARS-CoV-2 in the act” – viral infection of nasal mucosa spares nerve cells

A new study discusses the entry of SARS-CoV-2 into the respiratory and olfactory mucosa of the nasal cavity.

4 Nov 2021

COVID-19 antibody levels stay more durable in vaccinated people with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection

In what is believed to be one of the largest studies of its kind, Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers have shown that antibody levels against SARS-CoV-2 (the COVID-19 virus) stay more durable — that is, remain higher over an extended period of time — in people who were infected by the virus and then received protection from two doses of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine compared with those who only got immunized.

1 Nov 2021

Large U.S. study finds majority of mRNA COVID-19 side effects are mild and temporary

A new study posted to the medRxiv* preprint server, analyzed safety data from over 298 million mRNA COVID-19 vaccines administered in the first six months after the U.S. began its vaccination campaign.

1 Nov 2021

A new approach to selectively turn on gene therapies in target cells

Researchers at MIT and Harvard University have designed a way to selectively turn on gene therapies in target cells, including human cells.

28 Oct 2021

Immune response to mRNA COVID vaccines delayed in pregnant women

Researchers in the United States have conducted comprehensive profiling of humoral immune responses in pregnant, lactating, and non-pregnant women following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccination to probe differences in vaccine-induced immunity.

25 Oct 2021

Cancer patients have impaired antibody responses to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines

A new study posted to the medRxiv* preprint server studies the neutralizing antibody response in cancer patients diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), lung cancer, breast cancer, and various non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas (NHL), post-reception of two doses of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines.

25 Oct 2021

Two doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine effective in preventing COVID-19 hospitalization among adolescents

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a study to determine the vaccination efficacy in the adolescent population, published recently.

20 Oct 2021

SARS-CoV-2 antibodies detected in breast milk of vaccinated mothers

Now, a new medRxiv* preprint study finds mothers vaccinated either one of the messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines transferred neutralizing antibodies and cytokines, including interferon-gamma (IFNγ), to a breastfeeding child. Additionally, the humoral response in breastmilk was effective in neutralizing four variants of concern.

18 Oct 2021

Researchers identify protein that plays a key role in how the brain regulates appetite and metabolism

Researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University have identified a protein that plays a key role in how the brain regulates appetite and metabolism.