Why are we turning against the technology that saves milliions of lives?

In this 2-part series, we partner with STEMHiss, an international student-led organisation based in Canada, to delve into all things vaccines. Previously, Cindy Liu from STEMHiss reflected on the history of vaccine development and its lifesaving impact. In this article, our very own Project BioLogical writer Wei Zhanghao looks into recent technological advances in vaccines and the more insidious rise of anti-vaccine sentiments.

A monster that kills 1 in 3 of its victims, and leaves those who survive blind and with deep, pitted scars for the rest of their life. This is not a scene from a nightmare, but rather the symptoms of a disease that has terrorised humanity for millenia. Yet, for those born after 1980, the scourge of smallpox has faded from memory, thanks to one of our greatest inventions — vaccines.

In 1796, English physicist Edward Jenner realised that deliberately infecting people with cowpox — a virus in the same family as smallpox but was much milder because its preferred host is the cow — gave them protection against smallpox. With this, vaccination was born. After a coordinated worldwide effort helmed by the World Health Organisation to encircle clusters and deliver vaccines to the most remote places on earth, smallpox was officially declared to be eradicated in 1980.

The truth is that Jenner’s trial was not very ethical, because he infected multiple people, including an 8-year-old boy, with cowpox, and then challenged them repeatedly with the actual smallpox virus, all based on a hunch that they probably wouldn’t get infected. In Jenner’s case, it worked, but similar unethical trials in the past have caused great suffering. For instance, early tests of the influenza vaccine were conducted on the institutionalised population, and involved deliberately exposing both the group that received the vaccine and the group that received a placebo to the virus. Future reviews would confirm that participants had not been fully informed of the risks. Thankfully, robust guidelines exist today that protect vulnerable groups from being exploited by the manic hand of science.

At the same time, advancements in biotechnology have given us new ways to vaccinate. One of the most exciting areas in vaccine technology is the use of mRNA vaccines, which have been brought to the forefront during the Covid-19 pandemic because it is the mechanism behind the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. How does it work, and why is it so revolutionary? Understanding how mRNA vaccines work requires first understanding how traditional vaccines work.

Antigens are molecules on the surface of pathogens that the body recognises as foreign. The body produces corresponding antibodies that can bind to and neutralise the invader. In traditional vaccines, antigens are introduced to the immune system through weakened or inactivated versions of the actual virus. On the other hand, mRNA vaccines introduce mRNA that codes for viral antigens into the cell. They do so by packaging the mRNA into lipid nanoparticles which fuse with cell membranes, releasing the genetic information into the cytosol. There, it is translated by ribosomes to produce the antigen, which is displayed on the cell’s surface. The immune system is alerted to the foreign protein, triggering an immune response that ultimately leads to immunity against the virus with this antigen. In the Covid-19 vaccine, for instance, the mRNA codes for the spike protein which the virus uses to gain entry into the cell.

mRNA vaccines are advantageous compared to traditional vaccines in many ways. Firstly, it is faster to produce. Unlike traditional vaccines that take months to develop because every new strain of a virus has to be cultivated in a lab, mRNA vaccines can be ready in weeks. This is because the only information needed is the genetic code for the viral antigen, which can be sequenced with incredible speed and accuracy as a result of breakthroughs in sequencing technologies. Secondly, it is safer for producers since the production of mRNA vaccines does not require the handling of large batches of live viruses. Thirdly, the process is easier to streamline. In fact, the only thing that changes from one mRNA vaccine to the next is the sequence of nucleotides being synthesised, so facilities can easily transition with minimal changes to the production process.

The longstanding tension between protecting individual liberty and safeguarding public health continues to take centre stage in the vaccine conversation. In fact, in recent years, the anti-vaccine movement has grown in strength and vigour. The outlook for vaccine research has become more bleak after President Trump appointed prominent vaccine critic Robert F. Kennedy Jr to lead the US Department of Health and Human Services. Since taking charge, he has already cancelled research grants tied to pandemic preparedness and HIV prevention. We may be quick to hurl furious and insulting remarks at the anti-vaccine community,  as their actions are endangering the lives of those who cannot get vaccines for legitimate medical reasons, but I argue that we should refrain from doing so. We must try to understand where anti-vaxxers are coming from, so that we can better address their concerns. Ostracising them only deepens mistrust and prevents constructive dialogue.

Vaccines have worked so well that the memory of diseases like measles and polio have faded to the point where many new parents no longer understand the need to give their healthy babies dozens of painful needles. Coupled with fraudulent studies linking vaccines to autism, conspiracy theories circulating on social media claiming that mRNA vaccines are part of a covert operation to control our bodies and an innate susceptibility to equate correlation and causation, it is no wonder that more people are beginning to question vaccines.

The truth is that we may never be able to change the minds of anti-vaxxers — people do not like to admit that they are wrong — but what we can do is to ensure that fewer people are influenced by their voices. That begins with education. Furthermore, politicians should be aware of their messaging. For example, instead of claiming that vaccines are “100% safe”, they should focus on emphasising that the risks are low, so low that you are more likely to die from taking a cab to the vaccine centre than from getting the jab itself. Governments and independent review bodies must continue to regulate vaccine developers and hold them to the highest standards, guaranteeing safety and transparency.

Vaccines are undoubtedly one of the most useful creations humanity has ever invented. Over the past 50 years, global immunisation efforts have saved an estimated 154 million lives — 6 lives every minute every year. It has given 100 million children another chance at life. Let’s not make the mistake to say no to vaccines.

References

1. Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell. (2024). The (Second) Deadliest Virus. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kr57ax0OWMk&t=508s

2. TED-Ed. (2014). How we conquered the deadly smallpox virus - Simona Zompi. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqUFy-t4MlQ&t=74s

3. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia. (2022). Ethical Issues and Vaccines | History of Vaccines. https://historyofvaccines.org/vaccines-101/ethical-issues-and-vaccines

4. Pfizer. (2021). Understanding six types of vaccine technologies. https://www.pfizer.com/news/articles/understanding_six_types_of_vaccine_technologies

5. Norbert Pardi, Michael J. Hogan, Frederick W. Porter, Drew Weissman. (2018). mRNA vaccines — a new era in vaccinology. Nat Rev Drug Discov 17, 261–279. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrd.2017.243

6. Pfizer. (2022). What makes an RNA vaccine different from a conventional vaccine? https://www.pfizer.com/news/articles/what_makes_an_rna_vaccine_different_from_a_conventional_vaccine

7. Elie Dolgin. (2025). How political attacks could crush the mRNA vaccine revolution. Nature News Feature. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01462-9

8. Vox. (2015). The origins of the anti-vaccine movement. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzvfpyyZO9o

9. Doctor Mike. (2025). The truth about my anti-vax debate. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fy3oJpuFzaI

10. John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health International Vaccine Access Centre. (2024). Celebrating 50 Years of Cross-Cutting Impact: The Essential Programme on Immunization (EPI). https://publichealth.jhu.edu/ivac/2024/celebrating-50-years-of-cross-cutting-impact-the-essential-programme-on-immunization-epi

Image Credit: https://www.healthxchange.sg/medicine-first-aid/medicine/types-vaccines