Ninety Japanese scientists have decided who will be awarded the Keio Medicine Prize.
The honor was awarded to the Hungarian scientist for the discovery of specific RNA modification leading to the development of mRNA vaccines, according to the university's announcement on September 15. Katalin Karikó started working with mRNA in America in 1989 because she was convinced that mRNA could be used to instruct cells to produce their own drugs, the university wrote in its justification. However, it turned out that the synthesized mRNA triggered a strong immune response accompanied by inflammation. After many years of trying, the scientist discovered that by incorporating a modified nucleoside - pseudouridine - into the mRNA, inflammation was avoided, and the modification produced a much larger amount of protein from the mRNA than in the case of the previous, unmodified version. .
This discovery has opened the way for the development of highly effective, innovative vaccines against the new type of coronavirus, the result of which means hope not only in the fight against infectious diseases, but also in the fight against cancer and heart disease.
Ninety Japanese scientists - after collecting proposals from all over the world - decide who will be awarded the Keio Medicine Prize. The awardees also receive a medal and 10 million yen (27 million forints).
As is well known, Katalin Karikó was awarded the Breakthrough Award, also known as the Oscar of Silicon Valley, last week.
Source: MTI
