Dozens of therapeutics based on the mRNA technology used to make the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines could emerge over the next 10 years, Moderna co-founder Derrick Rossi, PhD, told WBUR, an NPR affiliate.
Harnessing mRNA, which instructs cells to manufacture specific proteins, scientists could forge treatments for a variety of diseases including cancer, HIV and heart failure, and could use it to continue developing powerful vaccines, WBUR reports.
The mechanism of mRNA treatment, which causes cells to manufacture pathogen proteins, spurs a strong immune response in the recipient. That mechanism and other properties of mRNA could help scientists create cancer vaccines in the future, Cathy Wu, MD, an oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, told WBUR.
Particularly impressive is the speed at which mRNA vaccines can be produced, WBUR reports, as all that's needed to create a new one is a rewrite of some genetic code, which can be done relatively quickly.
More articles on digital transformation:
Telemedicine tops digital health funding in 2020 at $3.2B: 4 things to know
Duke medical school appoints chief science and digital officer
5 Mass General Brigham innovation projects awarded funding