Damn can you imagine? I never imagined that an HIV vaccine would be possible within my lifetime. Kind of reminds me of HepC. An older coworker told me how a friend killed himself back in the day for getting HepC from tainted blood (pretty much a death sentence at that time and it consumed him). But now it’s possible to CURE it and hopefully it’ll be the same for HIV soon. Fuck, science like this is amazing.
Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
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Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#32Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah I agree - so much of the original downlplaying of Covid was along the lines of "Well, the flu kills 50,000 people per year and we don't take extraordinary measures" which is an insane line of thought for multiple reasons but not least because we just write off 50,000+ people per year without much of a stink.
Don't they already have flu vaccines. I thought the issue was that they changed so rapidly the vaccines can't keep up?
I'm thinking down the line they could put more than the 3-4 strains in the vaccine that are in the current ones (Moderna is aiming for four right now, which is what the other "industry leaders" do). But I am not an expert, at all.
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#33biontech also just published a paper on how they're trying to tackle MS. mrna therapeutics are exciting stuff!
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#34Would it be easier to cover more flu strains with an mRNA vaccine? Could we shove like 100 in there?
There is a Netflix documentary called Pandemic about couple that is trying to eradicate flu. They found vaccine that works on all flu viruses but it takes 6 shots to work. That’s not practical at all therefore it’s not on the market yet.
I'd totally take that, assuming reasonable convenience and cost.
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#35(Caveat: amateur opinion based on mainstream broad understanding, not an actual scientist.) This is interesting, but so far a weak first step on flu. Each year experts stare at numbers and perhaps read some tea leaves to choose 4 strains to cover, often missing somewhat. The innovation I'd like to see: ignore the "choose 4" process, and instead aim to cover all known strains.
Even if we want to see a more innovative flu vaccine, choosing an iterative approach of getting a working one first, and then fine tuning it to protect against more variants is a good plan.
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#36Very cool! Also I’d hope to see Lyme in the mix. It’s so pervasive and creates all kinds of weird dietary and nervous system issues.
We already have a Lyme disease vaccine. However, the manufacturer refuses to sell it for human use due to PR threats from conspiracy theorists. Unfortunately, creating vaccines is only half the battle. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2870557/
I found that article very interesting, and think describing the pushback as PR threats from conspiracy theorists oversimplifies just a bit.
Aa mentioned in the article, it's very possible the vaccine triggers a rare, genetically associated autoimmune disorder normally caused by Lyme disease. It was also released roughly concurrently with at least one vaccine that was legitimately withdrawn for safety reasons.
Compared to, say, the covid-19 vaccines, or the MMR vaccines, I find the public hesitation more understandable. It's not like a disease with an especially high mortality rate or one that's spread person to person.
Not saying the push to shame it out of existence was right, since it sounds like the benefits outweighed the risks at least for some people, but there's a lot to unpack. Definitely worth a read.
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#37I am curious how a trial for the HIV vaccine will proceed in a world where PrEP is available.
I can see it going full steam ahead, myself, for a few reasons:
1) Do both, for additional safety.
2) PrEP has changed formulations, and may change again. This implies that the previous formulations were not completely optimal.
3) From what I understand, PrEP can be expensive, although your insurance may cover it. You can also get it overseas for much less but many are not comfortable with that.
4) It's a lifetime expense, even with insurance and a lifetime of having to take a drug versus one or more shots.
5) Not having to undergo kidney function tests on the regular might be nice.
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#38Very cool! Also I’d hope to see Lyme in the mix. It’s so pervasive and creates all kinds of weird dietary and nervous system issues.
We already have a Lyme disease vaccine. However, the manufacturer refuses to sell it for human use due to PR threats from conspiracy theorists. Unfortunately, creating vaccines is only half the battle. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2870557/
Isn't that exactly what the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program is supposed to prevent, by isolating vaccine makers from liability in exchange for a 75-cent tax that funds a no-fault compensation program?
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#39I am curious how a trial for the HIV vaccine will proceed in a world where PrEP is available.
There are probably a lot of people who are willing to take a one-time vaccine but not an expensive, daily series of pills which aren't completely free of side effects.
Re: Moderna is announcing three new vaccine programs
#40Would it be easier to cover more flu strains with an mRNA vaccine? Could we shove like 100 in there?
There is a Netflix documentary called Pandemic about couple that is trying to eradicate flu. They found vaccine that works on all flu viruses but it takes 6 shots to work. That’s not practical at all therefore it’s not on the market yet.
Interesting. What are the required timing of the six shots, the percentage effectiveness, and the duration of protection?