A number of vaccines are now out to provide immunity from Coronavirus COVID-19 virus.
The most popular are the Indian 'Covaxin' and 'Covidshield', Russia's 'Gamaleya', American BioNTech (Pfizer) and another from Moderna. Since data on Chinese vaccines is opaque and the great controversy surrounding them they have not been considered.
Considering that a brand new vaccine created for a brand new disease rushed in and out of production, It is but natural that with so much negative press, and 'expert' opinions being broadcast to us all.
India is a vaccine powerhouse with 6 manufacturers producing 60% of all global requirement.
The new vaccines developed are "Messenger RNA" (mRNA) vaccines. Messenger RNA vaccines are new and revolutionary compared to traditional methods of vaccination.
Here are 5 key points to know.
What are antibodies and antigens?
How do traditional vaccines work?
How are mRNA vaccines different?
Do the COVID-19 vaccines work?
Are the COVID-19 vaccines safe?
What are antibodies and antigens?
There are microbes (more commonly known as "germs") everywhere. In the air we breathe, in the food we eat, on our skin and within our entire body. Microbes are essential for our existence, but some of them are bad guys and they are called pathogens. Pathogens are infectious microbes in the form of viruses, bacteria, parasites, or even fungi that can cause disease.
Each pathogen has its own unique antigen. An antigen is almost like a pathogen's ID card.
Antibodies are like our body's security guards. They check the IDs (antigens) of incoming microbes. Antibodies are proteins that identify and neutralise threats to our body.
When a pathogen enters our body with a never-before-seen antigen, our body doesn't recognise the threat right away. It takes time for our body to develop antibodies capable of identifying the antigen and neutralising the threat. During that time, we get sick.
Once we have antibodies that recognise the antigen of a particular pathogen, we become immune to that pathogen. Unfortunately, some pathogens evolve VERY rapidly, developing new antigens our body doesn't recognise. This can cause us to become repeatedly ill with similar diseases or get repeat vaccinations. Cold and flu viruses are prime examples of this.
How do traditional vaccines work?
Traditional vaccines inject a weakened or inactive part of a pathogen into your body. This way, our body has time to recognise the threat and develop antibodies without us getting sick.
Vaccines work well majority of the time, but there are cases of people reporting mild symptoms after getting a vaccine. These symptoms are typically minor compared to the full-blown disease, however.
This is how the world effectively coped with the dreaded smallpox pandemic.
People were exposed people to cowpox, a virus similar to smallpox, but much weaker and prevented people from getting smallpox. We are now on the verge of completely eliminating polio.
The near-elimination of polio is particularly noteworthy because like COVID-19 there are many asymptomatic cases that make it difficult to trace. Therefore universal vaccination is a very good idea.
How are mRNA vaccines different than traditional vaccines?
The COVID-19 vaccines now developed are unlike traditional vaccines. They are messenger RNA vaccines which do nOT contain a weakened or inactive part of a pathogen. They do not contain any part of the coronavirus or any other virus, for that matter.
How do COVID-19 vaccines work?
Our body's cells contain DNA. This DNA is a software code for how our body works. Like a script or blueprint. This code gets copied into RNA messages. The RNA messages get translated into proteins that do various jobs.
Imagine a construction blueprint for an entire city. The blueprint contains instructions for where to pave streets, where to build City Hall, where to build police and fire departments, commercial districts, residential districts, a sewage system, power lines, etc, etc...
There are foremen who supervise all the different construction projects. These foremen read the blueprint and give directions to the construction workers.
In this comparison, we are the city. The blueprint is our DNA. The supervisors are RNA messengers. The workers are proteins.
As mentioned earlier, that antibodies are proteins...
The job of these particular proteins is, to recognise and neutralise threats to our body. In the city metaphor, they're our body's police officers.
A Messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine sends a message to your body's cells to create antibody proteins that recognise a pathogen's antigen. Once those antibodies are created, our body's cells throw those instructions in the trash.
Quite frankly, mRNA vaccines are a remarkable scientific achievement. The speed with which the COVID-19 vaccines were created is particularly impressive.
In order to do this, scientists had to sequence the genome of the COVID-19 virus. Coronavirus is a bit of a weirdo in that it has no DNA. It only has RNA, which is common among viruses. Scientists then studied the RNA and identified which messages do what. Once they identified the RNA message responsible for creating a protein that acts as an antigen, they knew what to put in the vaccine.
The beauty of vaccination by this method is that our own body creates the antigen. Our body follows the instructions of the RNA message to create the antigen itself. It is then able to develop antibodies trained to recognise and neutralize that antigen.
This way, our body can achieve immunity without ever being exposed to the virus at all, not even in vaccine form.
Do the COVID-19 vaccines work?
Clinical trials first start with a small batch of volunteers, followed by several (usually) stages of trials where each subsequent trial has larger group of volunteers across wide range of age, race, weight, body types and other factors.
Half of the volunteers received the vaccine; half received the placebo. The placebo is a harmless imitation that lacks any therapeutic value beyond the psychological effects of thinking you received the vaccine.
The vaccine is administered in 2 doses. The clinical trials observed that new cases of COVID-19 tapered off 10 days after the first dose. The efficacy after this first dose was observed to be approximately 60%. Clinical trials found the efficacy to leap to 92% to 95% after the second dose.
Thus scientific data suggests COVID-19 vaccines work just fine for the vast majority of people. This is consistent with the efficacy of most other vaccines.
Are the COVID-19 vaccines safe?
Let’s go back to the scientific data...
Experts and authorities who reviewed the results of the clinical trials, found the vaccines effective and with no major issues. Some adverse effects noted are that many people who were vaccinated experienced fatigue, headaches, and a few other minor side effects that only lasted a day.
One of the concerns many people have about the COVID-19 vaccines is the speed with which they were developed. There is a natural fear that corners were cut in the usual safety regulations.
The COVID-19 vaccines have been "held to the same rigorous safety and effectiveness standards as all other types of vaccines..." safety and effectiveness standards they're talking about.
Allergic reactions to the vaccine are an issue that did not arise in clinical trials. Some people experienced allergic reactions in the large-scale rollout since.
Despite how widely publicised these allergic reactions are, they are very rare. The rate is less than 1 person in a million.
Are there "microchips" or "nanotransmitters" in COVID-19 vaccines?
If government tracking is our concern, rest assured that the government has plenty of ways to track us without the help of micro-chipped vaccines. The device you're using to read this article is one of them.
**Will the COVID-19 vaccines (and other mRNA vaccines) alter my DNA?
The vaccines involve injecting synthetically created copies of a foreign organism's genetic material into your body's cells. That sounds scary!
However, the nucleus of our cells houses our DNA. The RNA messages contained in the vaccine never enter the nucleus of our cells, so they cannot affect our DNA.
Our body throws the RNA messages into the trash after it creates the antigen and antibodies. This is true for ALL RNA messages, including the ones our body creates on its own.
Our body's cells are remarkably smart and efficient. Once RNA messages have been read and the appropriate proteins created, our body no longer needs them. RNA then degrades very quickly thereafter.
Do the COVID-19 vaccines cause infertility or increase the risk for miscarriage?
There is no known scientific evidence of this whatsoever.
However, there's plenty of evidence to the contrary. While it is known that pregnant women are at a higher risk for a severe experience with COVID-19, no increase in miscarriage rates have been noticed among those infected with COVID-19. Nor has any increase been noticed in those administered the vaccine.
What if someone is allergic to eggs?
Many traditional vaccines use egg cells in development. This sometimes causes people with egg allergies to have reactions. Fortunately, the COVID-19 vaccines do NOT contain any egg cells and egg cells were NOT used in development.
This article is not to convince the reader to get vaccinated. Rather, it is to provide vital information to help make an informed decision. I have no intention of getting vaccinated.
Good health comes from having a healthy lifestyle. The best immunity comes from a healthy diet, regular physical activity, good sleep and a clear conscience, something no vaccine can provide.
Interesting Links:
Covaxin and Covishield: What we know about India's Covid vaccines - BBC news
What are viral vector-based vaccines and how could they be used against COVID-19? - GAVI (The vaccine alliance)
COVID-19: Are 80% cases in India really asymptomatic - Down to Earth
Global Coronavirus Statistics
Fear does not stop death - Guru Wonder
Will Coronavirus COVID-19, kill me? - Guru Wonder
Covid-19 is not the kiss of death - Guru Wonder
Guru Wonder: