The health secretary terminated multiple contracts for the platform, which he said is ineffective against upper respiratory infections.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in his department’s latest move against messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) technology, has canceled contracts for vaccines and therapeutics that utilize the mRNA platform.
Here’s what to know about the technology.
How Does It Work?
The mRNA, through an injection, typically in the upper arm, is delivered into the body, where it teaches cells to produce proteins.
With most mRNA vaccines, the modified mRNA is delivered with lipid nanoparticles. In the COVID-19 vaccines, mRNA instructs cells to make the same spike protein found in COVID-19.
The immune system recognizes the protein as foreign and produces antibodies to fight it.
“At the end of the process, our bodies have learned how to help protect against future infection,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says on its website.
When the vaccines were rolled out, vaccine companies and officials said that the mRNA quickly left the body, but that has proven to be incorrect. Studies have found mRNA in the blood about one month after vaccination and in lymph nodes two months after receipt.
First Products Cleared During Pandemic
The Pfizer vaccine, cleared in late 2020, was the first mRNA product that became available in the United States. Regulators shortly after authorized Moderna’s shot.
Scientists discovered mRNA in the 1960s. Researchers then studied how it could be used in vaccines and other applications.
A major issue was the effective delivery of mRNA before it degraded. Scientists found that lipid nanoparticles could protect the mRNA until it taught cells to produce a protein.
No other mRNA vaccines have been approved in the United States, but a number are in development, including influenza shots. Some companies are also working on mRNA therapeutics.
Kennedy said in a statement that officials are canceling contracts with Emory University and Tiba Biotech that were funded by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. The authority’s website lists an Emory project developing an inhaled, mRNA-based antiviral platform and a Tiba project developing a platform that features nanoparticles delivering RNA antiviral treatment to the lungs.
Emory and Tiba did not respond to requests for comment.
