An inspiring underdog story and the vaccine in my arm
“We first sent to a Nature journal, and within 24 hours, they rejected it as an incremental contribution. I started learning English only at university, so I had to look up the meaning of the word incremental!”
Katalin Karikó, in 2021, on her breakthrough paper that led to a Nobel Prize today.
Consider the life of Katlin Karikó who today won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with her long-time collaborator Drew Weissman for essentially developing the technology that made mRNA vaccines possible - a significant step in saving millions of lives and ending the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 1985, Hungarian scientist Katlin Karikó wanted to pursue a career in science in the United States. Yet a audacious challenge lay before her: Hungarian currency could not legally be converted and taken out of the country.
Karikó and her husband, Bela Francia, sold their car, securing 900 British pounds from the black market. This money, a lifeline for their new life, was sewn into their daughter Susan's teddy bear. As destiny would have it, Susan would later grace the world stage as a two-time Olympic gold medalist in rowing for the United States.
But Philadelphia was no bed of roses for Karikó. She faced funding challenges, changing bosses, and even lost her job. Threatened with deportation and fueled by the determination to provide for her young daughter,
Karikó secured another position in Bethesda, Maryland. Her routine became grueling, marked by early morning commutes and nights spent at colleagues' homes or her office. Her struggle was palpable. She remarked, “From the outside, if somebody looked at me, they could smell sweat and struggle.”
The global scientific community was grappling with a mystery surrounding synthetic RNA. In lab settings, it led to cell death making it unusable as a potential vaccine.
But Karikó, driven by her relentless spirit, was convinced of a solution. By 1990, she had shifted to the University of Pennsylvania, endeavoring to create RNA that wouldn't be attacked by the cell's defenses. Despite evidence suggesting its feasibility, her grant applications for mRNA-based gene therapy were repeatedly denied, leading to her demotion.
Drawing a parallel to Cassandra from Greek mythology, Karikó felt prophetic about her beliefs yet seemed cursed, with her ideas consistently rebuffed. “I couldn’t get money. I couldn’t convince people,” she lamented.
But fate had its own plans. By 1997, Karikó's path crossed with Drew Weissman, an immunologist. They embarked on a collaborative journey.
Years of research led to a groundbreaking revelation: modifying one of RNA's building blocks prevented it from being flagged as an invader. This meant RNA could enter a cell without sparking inflammation.
“This was a game-changer for the field,” proclaimed Norbert Pardi, a collaborator. Furthermore, enveloping mRNA in a lipid coating enhanced its efficiency.
Realizing the vast potential of their discovery, Karikó and Weissman ventured to establish a company. Unfortunately, the scientific community remained oblivious to their pioneering work.
But when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, mRNA's potential was ushered into the spotlight, culminating in the groundbreaking Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
The world owes much to Karikó's , whose belief paved the way for a beacon of hope in the form of mRNA vaccines. I certainly owe her a debt of gratitude. I tweeted this out after my book was published and just as I was about to get my first shot.
I’m about to get an mRNA vaccine booster again this week. :-)
That’s all for now.
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Anirban