mRNA - Hype or HopeFor many years, mRNA technology seemed unsuitable as a therapeutic approach. But today, it is expected that in the future mRNA will be used to treat a wide range of diseases – including cancer, HIV, malaria, cardiovascular, and autoimmune diseases. This program examines how mRNA vaccines work, showing how they transport the blueprint of a viral protein into cells which then begin to produce the foreign biomolecule, causing the immune system to ramp up its defenses against the virus, even though it only knows a small, harmless part of the pathogen. Scientists started investigating mRNA a good three decades ago with the aim of developing individual therapies to treat cancer. The video looks at clinical studies on how heart muscle regenerates immediately after a heart attack with an mRNA-based therapy, as well as how people with autoimmune diseases or HIV could also benefit from mRNA preparations and vaccines. The program also explains how mRNA vaccines can be adapted more quickly than conventional vaccines – and would therefore be more effective against changing viral strains, such as the flu.