They noticed that naively adding test tube synthesized mRNA elicited immflamatory responses from immune cells, while mRNA derived from cells did not. They figured out that chemical modifications to mRNAs were responsible for avoiding these immune reactions to the mRNAs.
These results would open the path for development of mRNA-based vaccines, like the vaccines repsonsible for limiting the damage of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman.
They noticed that naively adding test tube synthesized mRNA elicited immflamatory responses from immune cells, while mRNA derived from cells did not. They figured out that chemical modifications to mRNAs were responsible for avoiding these immune reactions to the mRNAs.
These results would open the path for development of mRNA-based vaccines, like the vaccines repsonsible for limiting the damage of the COVID-19 pandemic.
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2023/press-release/