COVID-19 Vaccine Breakthrough: Promising EU Research on mRNA Therapies for Other Diseases

The success of the technology used in the vaccine candidates against COVID-19 developed by Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech, which are currently in late-stage trials, are very good news for researchers working on mRNA-based technology for other diseases as well. mRNA technology scored an impressive efficacy rate of over 90% on interim findings.

Two of our currently running Horizon 2020 research projects, B-SMART and EXPERT, aim at developing mRNA therapies to be used for different diseases: B-SMART targets neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s while EXPERT aims to apply them to combat cancer and cardiovascular disease. In a recent article published by Thomson Reuters, Raymond Schiffelers (UMCU), coordinator of both projects, says the major advantage of the technology is that vaccine developers could mount an ultra-fast response: “Within weeks, testing can start, a major advantage over conventional vaccines.” This recent success of mRNA technology in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic makes Schiffelers confident as it shows that his consortia are on the right track!

For more information on the topic, please read the full article "Breakthrough COVID vaccine tech could help defeat other diseases" online.