Nucleic acid-based vaccine platforms against the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19)

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has infected 673,010,496 patients and caused the death of 6,854,959 cases globally until today. Enormous efforts have been made to develop fundamentally different COVID-19 vaccine platforms. Nucleic acid-based vaccines consisting of mRNA and DNA vaccines (third-generation vaccines) have been promising in terms of rapid and convenient production and efficient provocation of immune responses against the COVID-19. Several DNA-based (ZyCoV-D, INO-4800, AG0302-COVID19, and GX-19N) and mRNA-based (BNT162b2, mRNA-1273, and ARCoV) approved vaccine platforms have been utilized for the COVID-19 prevention. mRNA vaccines are at the forefront of all platforms for COVID-19 prevention. However, these vaccines have lower stability, while DNA vaccines are needed with higher doses to stimulate the immune responses. Intracellular delivery of nucleic acid-based vaccines and their adverse events needs further research. Considering re-emergence of the COVID-19 variants of concern, vaccine reassessment and the development of polyvalent vaccines, or pan-coronavirus strategies, is essential for effective infection prevention.

Progress and prospects on vaccine development against monkeypox infection

“…Nucleic acid vaccines are safe and successfully mimic the immunization of inactivated vaccines. Furthermore, the industrial generation of such vaccines is affordable and straightforward [ 30 , 31 ]. To recognize the most efficient vaccine, it is essential to assess effects, including reactogenicity, safety, cytotoxicity effect, and vaccine-associated side effects, especially for high-risk and vulnerable people.…”

Advances in Nucleic Acid Research: Exploring the Potential of Oligonucleotides for Therapeutic Applications and Biological Studies

“…RNA-based vaccines (pioneered by Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman, who were awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine), as exemplified by the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines, represent a revolutionary approach to vaccination, harnessing nucleic acids to trigger immune responses. This alteration has the potential to inhibit the activation of inflammatory reactions and enhance protein production upon mRNA delivery to cells [10,11]. In biosensing, ODNs have been harnessed as molecular recognition elements.…”