Researchers bird flu vaccines for humans have turned to a cutting-edge technology that enabled the rapid development of lifesaving covid shots.
There鈥檚 a catch: The mRNA technology faces growing doubts among Republicans, including people around President Donald Trump.
Legislation aimed to ban or limit mRNA vaccines was introduced this year by GOP lawmakers in at least seven states. In some cases, the measures would hit doctors who give the injections with criminal penalties, fines, and possible revocation of their licenses.
Some congressional Republicans are also pressing regulators to revoke federal approval for mRNA-based covid shots, which President Donald Trump touted as one of the signature achievements of his first term.
The opposition comes at a critical juncture because vaccines using mRNA have applications well beyond avian flu and covid. They hold the promise of lifesaving breakthroughs to treat many diseases, , according to clinical trials. The proposed bans could block access to these advances.
MRNA is found naturally in human cells. It is a molecule that carries genetic material and, in a vaccine, trains the body鈥檚 immune system to fight viruses, cancer cells, and other conditions. An advantage of mRNA technology is that it can be developed more quickly to target specific variants and is safer than developing a vaccine made from inactivated virus.
鈥淩ight now, if we had a bird flu pandemic, we would have a shortage of the vaccine we need,鈥 said Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota鈥檚 Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. 鈥淭he one thing that could save us is mRNA vaccine. The challenge would be if mRNA is banned. This is truly dangerous policy.鈥
The pushback conflicts with innovations championed by Trump. He assembled tech tycoons at the White House just after his inauguration to announce Stargate, a $500 billion artificial intelligence initiative that could help transform cancer treatment by creating tumor-targeting mRNA vaccines. The fledging partnership between Oracle, SoftBank Corp., and OpenAI, co-founded by Elon Musk, envisions leveraging AI in part to improve health outcomes. Patients would undergo blood tests and AI would be used to find cancer.
Scientists would examine the DNA and RNA (RNA and mRNA serve different functions in a cell) of a specific patient鈥檚 tumor to create a vaccine to teach that person鈥檚 immune system to target and destroy cells driving cancer growth.
鈥淚magine early cancer detection, the development of a cancer vaccine for your particular cancer aimed at you, and have that vaccine available in 48 hours,鈥 Oracle co-founder at the White House event.
Scores of mRNA clinical trials for cancer vaccines are underway and some have , of death and recurrence roughly in half for certain patients. In research led by the , for example, patients with advanced kidney cancer remained cancer-free about three years after an mRNA-based treatment in an early-phase trial.
But some politically conservative doctors, lawmakers, and researchers question the safety of mRNA vaccines, especially covid shots made with the technology. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in 2021 to rescind approval for covid shots and called them 鈥溾 鈥 a controversial statement that has been refuted.
Now that he鈥檚 newly confirmed as Health and Human Services secretary, Kennedy is poised to oversee federal approvals of vaccines, with the power to shape policy such as immunization schedules and appoint vaccine opponents to committees that advise on the approval of shots.
late last month that Trump administration health officials were reevaluating a $590 million contract for bird flu shots that the Biden administration awarded to Moderna as part of its push to examine spending on mRNA vaccines.
HHS and White House spokespeople didn鈥檛 return emails seeking comment.
Support for an mRNA ban is coming from other sources too. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to stop recommending the covid-19 vaccine for children and called for a state ban on mRNA vaccine mandates. In February, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) that the 鈥淔DA should immediately revoke approval of these shots,鈥 and (R-Wis.) is leading an investigation into the safety of the vaccines. Trump in February to strip federal funds from schools that require covid shots for attendance.
Vaccine skepticism has become pronounced among Republicans since the pandemic. Four in 10 Republicans who responded to a said it was 鈥減robably鈥 or 鈥渄efinitely true鈥 that 鈥渕ore people have died from covid-19 vaccines than from the virus itself.鈥 Just a quarter of Republicans reported holding that view in 2023.
The effort is also finding traction at the local level. A outside Boise, Idaho, last year banned its health department from administering covid-19 vaccines, and local lawmakers in , passed a resolution in February against mRNA vaccines.
The ABCs of mRNA
The CDC for anyone 6 months and older, especially seniors and people who are immunocompromised. About 29 million doses had been administered to adults in the 2024-25 season in retail pharmacies and doctors鈥 offices through Feb. 8, based on federal data.
, mRNA enters muscle cells and teaches them to produce a spike protein found on the surface of a virus. The body鈥檚 immune system then targets the spike protein, priming it to identify and fight the virus 鈥 in this case, the coronavirus that causes covid. The body鈥檚 cells then break down the mRNA and remove it, according to federal health researchers.
covid vaccines had been administered worldwide as of August 2024.
Researchers say the vaccinations 鈥 estimates for the first year alone go as high as 19.8 million 鈥 in the throes of a pandemic that had hospitals ordering refrigerated mobile morgues and deliberating over which patients to put on ventilators. Two University of Pennsylvania scientists credited with developing the mRNA technology behind the shots .
The FDA says the covid , with fewer than 1 in 200,000 vaccinated individuals experiencing a severe allergic reaction or heart problems like myocarditis or pericarditis, and the agency notes that 鈥 about these vaccines, particularly the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, continues to circulate.鈥
While many people hadn鈥檛 heard of the mRNA platform until the covid shots were rolled out, it was discovered in the 1960s. The first mRNA flu vaccines were tested in mice in the 1990s. A clinical trial involving direct injection of mRNA to fight cancer occurred in 2008. Clinical trials involving the covid mRNA vaccines involved tens of thousands of volunteers.
Reviews of mortality data showed 鈥渘o unusual patterns of death were detected that might suggest a potential safety concern,鈥 based on a by a technical working group that provided guidance to the CDC.
But those calling for a ban on all mRNA vaccines say there is a , and they say covid vaccines by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna were hastily approved without proper vetting. They assert without strong evidence that the vaccines cause serious injuries to the heart, nerves, and immune and reproductive systems, and can lead to cancer.
The vaccine has been linked to rare cases of heart inflammation and inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart, although the severity has varied and most patients fully recovered, the CDC says.
鈥淭he allegations are beyond reason,鈥 said Anne Schuchat, a career scientist who worked on covid and who twice served stints as acting director of the CDC. 鈥淭he mRNA covid vaccines were extensively studied after use and do not have those problems.鈥
鈥淚鈥檓 concerned about the whole mRNA technology. I don鈥檛 trust anything that fools the body,鈥 said Stephanie Seneff, a computer scientist and anti-vaccine activist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 鈥淚鈥檓 really glad people are waking up and realizing it鈥檚 not the thing to do anymore.鈥
Vaccines generally work by tricking the body into producing antibodies to fight illnesses.
Pfizer spokespeople didn鈥檛 return an email seeking comment. A Moderna spokesperson, Chris Ridley, said legislative efforts to ban or restrict mRNA medicines are largely driven by misunderstandings about their safety profile and mechanism of action. While mRNA-based shots do not modify DNA, for example, that misconception is frequently cited in support of restrictions, Ridley said.
鈥淚f enacted, these measures could hinder important research and limit patient access to innovative treatments, potentially delaying life-changing medical advancements,鈥 Ridley said in a written statement.
Networks of Opposition
Groups opposed to the mRNA technology have built a vast and well-funded legal, marketing, and social media network. Members hold conferences to discuss strategies, fund lawsuits against vaccine mandates, and produce reports on the covid vaccines.
As for state legislative efforts, measures introduced this year have varied and their progress has been mixed. Montana鈥檚 measure, for instance, was blocked. Idaho lawmakers in February held a hearing on its bill, which calls for a 10-year moratorium on mRNA vaccines. Idaho鈥檚 proposal, likely to be amended, as well as Iowa鈥檚 and Montana鈥檚 have featured criminal penalties for providers who administer all or certain mRNA vaccines. In addition, some state bills, such as legislation in Pennsylvania and Tennessee, focused on the use of the vaccine in livestock and food production.
Various bills are pending in the Texas Legislature to restrict mRNA vaccines in both livestock . would require anyone administering certain covid mRNA vaccines to inform patients that the shot is contaminated with fragments of 鈥渂acterial plasmid DNA.鈥
Covid mRNA shots may have minute amounts of residual DNA from production processes but they are heavily degraded and pose no risk, according to the , which evaluates vaccine safety concerns.
Speakers at some legislative proceedings have included representatives from Children鈥檚 Health Defense, an activist, anti-vaccine group founded by Kennedy.
The in January 2024 called for a halt in the use of covid mRNA vaccines. And in Texas, in January moved to appeal a lawsuit he filed claiming Pfizer misrepresented the safety of its mRNA shot.
Efforts to restrict the shots have raised the profile of groups such as the Independent Medical Alliance, which advocates for mRNA-based covid vaccines to be withdrawn from the market.
鈥淲e should stop it and test it more before we move forward,鈥 said pediatric cardiologist Kirk Milhoan, a senior fellow at the alliance.
Groups opposed to mRNA shots are to urge more caution. Yale University researchers that they found spike protein still circulating in a subset of individuals with a debilitating, post-vaccination condition. Some of the individuals who experienced chronic illness after getting the shots had detectable levels of spike protein more than 700 days after vaccination. This study was small 鈥 42 participants 鈥 and not peer-reviewed.
Its findings also don鈥檛 show the spike protein is a health risk or a cause of vaccine injury.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an initial, provocative study in which you can鈥檛 draw conclusions,鈥 said William Schaffner, past medical director of National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. 鈥淭his is one of the most widely used vaccines around the globe. It鈥檚 the furthest thing from an experimental vaccine.鈥
But what this growing pushback shows, according to some researchers, is that distrust isn鈥檛 coming only from fringe groups anymore.
鈥淭here are truly amazing mRNA cancer vaccines out there,鈥 said Kate Broderick, chief innovation officer at Maravai LifeSciences, which works on vaccine development. 鈥淢y fear as a scientist is that it鈥檚 been tainted in the public.鈥
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