The four main types of Covid-19 vaccines in development
Even before coronavirus broke out in 2019, pharmaceutical companies were working on designs for vaccines they could quickly adapt to a pandemic strain of virus. Their work paid off in some of the new Covid-19 vaccines being tested and prepared for rollout as illustrated below.
mRNA VACCINE
Vector vaccines
Used by: Pfizer, Moderna
Used by: AstraZeneca, Janssen, Sputnik
Doses: 2
Doses: 1-2
mRNA vaccines are the newest approach. They use genetic material called messenger RNA, a kind of genetic software that instructs cells to make a piece of the coronavirus spike protein. That will get the attention of the immune system. The mRNA is coated in soft fatty lipids to protect it.
Vector vaccines use another virus to carry in the genetic instructions to make the spike protein. For coronavirus they all use adenoviruses, a type of common cold virus. They attach to cells and inject DNA that tells the cells to make coronavirus spike protein.
Protein subunit vaccine
Whole, killed vaccines
Used by: Sinovac
Used by: Novavax, Sanofi
Doses: 1-2
Doses: 1
Protein subunit vaccines just get little pieces of the target virus circulating in the system for the immune system to find and recognize. Instead of using the human body as the vaccine factory, genetically engineered insect viruses are used to infect moths, whose cells then produce the pieces of coronavirus spike protein. These are harvested and made into a vaccine.
Whole inactivated virus vaccines take longer to make because batches of the coronavirus must first be grown and then killed using a chemical or heat, and then made into a vaccine that can be injected to elicit an immune reponse.
mRNA VACCINE
Vector vaccines
Used by: Pfizer, Moderna
Used by: AstraZeneca, Janssen, Sputnik
Doses: 2
Doses: 1-2
mRNA vaccines are the newest approach. They use genetic material called messenger RNA, a kind of genetic software that instructs cells to make a piece of the coronavirus spike protein. That will get the attention of the immune system. The mRNA is coated in soft fatty lipids to protect it.
Vector vaccines use another virus to carry in the genetic instructions to make the spike protein. For coronavirus they all use adenoviruses, a type of common cold virus. They attach to cells and inject DNA that tells the cells to make coronavirus spike protein.
Protein subunit vaccine
Whole, killed vaccines
Used by: Novavax, Sanofi
Used by: Sinovac
Doses: 1-2
Doses: 1
Protein subunit vaccines just get little pieces of the target virus circulating in the system for the immune system to find and recognize. Instead of using the human body as the vaccine factory, genetically engineered insect viruses are used to infect moths, whose cells then produce the pieces of coronavirus spike protein. These are harvested and made into a vaccine.
Whole inactivated virus vaccines take longer to make because batches of the coronavirus must first be grown and then killed using a chemical or heat, and then made into a vaccine that can be injected to elicit an immune reponse.
mRNA VACCINE
Vector vaccines
Protein subunit vaccine
Whole, killed vaccines
Used by: Pfizer, Moderna
Used by: AstraZeneca, Janssen, Sputnik
Used by: Novavax, Sanofi
Used by: Sinovac
Doses: 2
Doses: 1-2
Doses: 1
Doses: 1-2
mRNA vaccines are the newest approach. They use genetic material called messenger RNA, a kind of genetic software that instructs cells to make a piece of the coronavirus spike protein. That will get the attention of the immune system. The mRNA is coated in soft fatty lipids to protect it.
Protein subunit vaccines just get little pieces of the target virus circulating in the system for the immune system to find and recognize. Instead of using the human body as the vaccine factory, genetically engineered insect viruses are used to infect moths, whose cells then produce the pieces of coronavirus spike protein. These are harvested and made into a vaccine.
Whole inactivated virus vaccines take longer to make because batches of the coronavirus must first be grown and then killed using a chemical or heat, and then made into a vaccine that can be injected to elicit an immune reponse.
Vector vaccines use another virus to carry in the genetic instructions to make the spike protein. For coronavirus they all use adenoviruses, a type of common cold virus. They attach to cells and inject DNA that tells the cells to make coronavirus spike protein.
