Pune: ‘mRNA can be helpful to prepare coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines stated Raipur based Pt Ravishankar Shukla University’s Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences Director, Dr Swarnalata Saraf in a recent webinar held on the topic ‘Strategies for mRNA Vaccine Production’ by MCE Society’s Allana College of Pharmacy, Pune.
RNA based vaccines -- more effective
“Conventional vaccine approaches have not been as effective against rapidly evolving pathogens like influenza or emerging disease threats such as the COVID-19. RNA based vaccines could have an impact in these areas due to their shorter manufacturing times and greater effectiveness,” said Saraf.
Helpful to prepare COVID-19 vaccines
Saraf also spoke about the immune system which provides the first-line defence against infection. She explained about mRNA biology, which includes synthesis of protein: transcription and translation and how mRNA translation helps to generate amino acids and proteins and mRNA is helpful to prepare COVID-19 vaccines while citing different types of vaccines such as first-generation, second-generation, toxoid vaccines, protein subunit, DNA vaccine, RNA vaccines etc.
Saraf Said, “Unlike a normal vaccine, RNA vaccines work by introducing an mRNA sequence which is coded for a disease-specific antigen, once produced within the body, the antigen is recognised by the immune system, preparing it to fight the real thing.”
Faster and cheaper
“RNA vaccines are faster and cheaper to produce than traditional vaccines, and RNA based vaccine is also safer for the patient, as they are not produced using infectious elements. Production of RNA vaccines is laboratory-based, and the process could be standardised and scaled, allowing quick responses to large outbreaks and epidemics,” added Saraf.
Dr Kanchan Chauhan, Dr Rani Potawale, Amruta Yadav and Rajat Sayyed coordinated the webinars under the convenorship of college principal Dr Kiran Bhise.
What are RNA vaccines and how do they work?
Conventional vaccines usually contain inactivated disease-causing organisms or proteins made by the pathogen (antigens), which work by mimicking the infectious agent. They stimulate the body’s immune response, so it is primed to respond more rapidly and effectively if exposed to the infectious agent in the future, said Saraf.
RNA vaccines use a different approach that takes advantage of the process that cells use to make proteins: cells use DNA as the template to make messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules, which are then translated to build proteins. An RNA vaccine consists of an mRNA strand that codes for a disease-specific antigen.
Once the mRNA strand in the vaccine is inside the body’s cells, the cells use the genetic information to produce the antigen. This antigen is then displayed on the cell surface, where the immune recognises it.
A major advantage of RNA vaccines is that RNA can be produced in the laboratory from a DNA template using readily available materials, less expensively, and faster than conventional vaccine production, Saraf concluded.