Abundance

Katalin Karikó, a Hungarian-born scientist, came to the University of Pennsylvania to work and study mRNA. Though not as commonly studied as DNA, mRNA presented the opportunity to turn human cells into factories to produce many kinds of crucial proteins. Despite these biological possibilities, Karikó’s frequent applications for government-funded grants were rejected throughout the entirety of her career. By the late 1990s, Karikó’s science career and the study of mRNA both seemed stuck.

In 2020, the novel coronavirus pandemic hit the world. Globally, countries scrambled to make policies to contain the contagion, keep people safe, and prevent the spread of infection. Scientists began researching masking procedures and the efficacy of masking in preventing contagion spread. Though masking could potentially reduce the risk of infection, a medicine that could create collective immunity became increasingly necessary. Before 2020, no vaccine had gone from the lab to the public in less than three years. The COVID vaccine did it in 10 months. The US issued an emergency authorization for two COVID therapies based on mRNA technology, from Pfizer and Moderna. The vaccines were immediately effective at reducing mortality in adults in every country. The pandemic presented a new challenge for the US to “invent” instead of “build” itself out.