Israeli researchers create the world’s first 100% effective mRNA vaccine against Bubonic Plague, paving the way for more targeted treatment against bacterial infections. Read the full story below.
require host cells to replicate and are rather simple to treat, bacteria are much more complicated. They do not depend on human cells to live on, and their protein is significantly different compared to the protein of human beings. Treating bacterial infections for a long time has proved an excruciatingly challenging process. Now, the mRNA vaccines are designed in such a way that they allow the immune system can learn to identify these bacterial infections and hit them with more precision. But now, the Israeli researchers have overcome this challenge.
According to Tel Aviv University’s Vice President for Research and Development, Prof. Dan Peer, the bacterium “spreads from person to person and causes respiratory illness, making it particularly difficult to develop a vaccine against it”.
Dr Uri Elia, a researcher from the Israel Institute for Biological Research, explained: “Viruses rely on a host cell to survive and replicate. They infect the cell with an RNA molecule (mRNA) that contains instructions for making viral proteins.”
“Bacteria, however, are a different story: they produce their own proteins and do not rely on human cells. Moreover, due to the different evolutionary paths of humans and bacteria, their proteins are very different from ours,” added Dr Ella
In 2023, the team developed a technique to produce bacterial proteins in human cells in a manner that the immune system recognises them as a threat to the body, mimicking a real and dangerous infection and training them to treat the infection.
In this system, scientists developed a new mRNA vaccine targeting pneumonic plague, the respiratory variant of bubonic plague. This form of the disease is highly contagious among human beings by air during direct contact and is almost undoubtedly deadly, in case it is not treated immediately.
Surprising results were delivered by the vaccine after experimentation on various animal models.
“After two vaccine doses, we achieved 100% protection against pneumonic plague,” said Prof. Dan Peer, Tel Aviv University’s Vice President for R&D. “The animals infected with the plague did not get sick at all.”
The models indicated that some high protection levels were achieved with only one dose of the vaccine, which demonstrated effectiveness, as well as the potential to achieve fast protection in case of an outbreak.
Although plague might appear to be one of the evil issues of the Middle Ages, however, the reality is different as its cases are seen in modern times too. According to WHO (World Health Organisation), dozens of cases of plague are reported annanlly, with high mortality rates.
Apart from the health issue, these infections are also a potential source of bioterrorism.
“This bacterium concerns us as a potential agent of bioterrorism,” warned Dr Elia. “If one of our enemies tries to use it against us, we want to be prepared with a vaccine.”
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention identifies Yersinia pestis as a category-A bioterror agent that can be turned into an instrument of mass destruction. To fight this, an effective, quick vaccine may be a line of last defence.
This innovation doesn’t help a single variant of a disease, but mRNA vaccines can be used for a myriad of other deadly infections. This medical breakthrough may also pave the way for other drug-resistant bacteria which multiply fast. The mRNA vaccine may further help the case of:
- Antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea
“The success of the current study paves the way for a whole world of mRNA-based vaccines against other deadly bacteria,” said Prof. Peer.
This is especially needed now as antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections have become a growing epidemic. As per a National Library of Medicine study, antibiotic-resistant bacteria caused more than 4.95 million deaths in 2019 worldwide- a figure that will strictly escalate by 2050, unless dealt with.
Not only a triumph of medicine, the mRNA vaccine against Yersinia pestis is a scientific and strategic breakthrough for the world. Emerging technology innovations such as the mRNA vaccine for Bubonic Plague provide hope and protection to millions. Moreover, these new innovations are more important now as the world has encounters new health hazrads like pandemics, bio terrorisms, etc.
As the success of this study transcends int ohuman studies, it represent the next stage of this progress. This study also marks the positive response of the COVID-19 vaccine as it continues to change the future of global health one microbe at a time.
