What is Vaccine: Definition and 65 Discussions

A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease. A vaccine typically contains an agent that resembles a disease-causing microorganism and is often made from weakened or killed forms of the microbe, its toxins, or one of its surface proteins. The agent stimulates the body's immune system to recognize the agent as a threat, destroy it, and to further recognize and destroy any of the microorganisms associated with that agent that it may encounter in the future. Vaccines can be prophylactic (to prevent or ameliorate the effects of a future infection by a natural or "wild" pathogen), or therapeutic (to fight a disease that has already occurred, such as cancer). Some vaccines offer full sterilizing immunity, in which infection is prevented completely.The administration of vaccines is called vaccination. Vaccination is the most effective method of preventing infectious diseases; widespread immunity due to vaccination is largely responsible for the worldwide eradication of smallpox and the restriction of diseases such as polio, measles, and tetanus from much of the world. The effectiveness of vaccination has been widely studied and verified; for example, vaccines that have proven effective include the influenza vaccine, the HPV vaccine, and the chickenpox vaccine. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that licensed vaccines are currently available for twenty-five different preventable infections.The terms vaccine and vaccination are derived from Variolae vaccinae (smallpox of the cow), the term devised by Edward Jenner (who both developed the concept of vaccines and created the first vaccine) to denote cowpox. He used the phrase in 1798 for the long title of his Inquiry into the Variolae vaccinae Known as the Cow Pox, in which he described the protective effect of cowpox against smallpox. In 1881, to honor Jenner, Louis Pasteur proposed that the terms should be extended to cover the new protective inoculations then being developed. The science of vaccine development and production is termed vaccinology.

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  1. bhobba

    COVID UQ Still Forging Ahead With Clamp Technology Vaccine

    Precis of a news report from today's Courier Mail. The University of Queensland clamp technology knocked out because it gave false positives to HIV tests is set for human trials early next year. Scientists have re-engineered the clamp, dubbed Clamp2, so there is no diagnostic interference. CEP...
  2. berkeman

    Fentanyl vaccine may have been discovered

    Interesting new development... https://www.newsnationnow.com/health/fentanyl-vaccine-may-have-been-discovered-researchers/?utm_campaign=NewsNation-trending-now&utm_source=kron4.com&utm_medium=newsnation-cross-brand
  3. Astronuc

    Can a COVID vaccine cause a cancer (e.g., lymphoma) to be worse?

    https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2022/09/mrna-covid-vaccine-booster-lymphoma-cancer/671308/
  4. Sagittarius A-Star

    COVID Rolling Review of HIPRA COVID-19 Vaccine: Booster for Adults

    Source: https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/news/ema-starts-rolling-review-covid-19-vaccine-hipra-phh-1v See also: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05246137 Source: https://pharmaboardroom.com/interviews/carles-fabrega-managing-director-human-health-hipra/
  5. mktsgm

    Medical What determines the long-term effectiveness of a viral vaccine?

    It is well known that RNA viruses mutate very quickly. Hence, it is said that it is very hard to develop an effective vaccine against it. With HIV and influenza RNA viruses the scientific world is still facing difficulty in developing effective long-term vaccines against them. Most influenza...
  6. Y

    Are all 3 shots of the Pfizer Covid vaccine the same?

    Like the name, are all 3 shots of Pfizer Covid vaccine identical in composition or they are different formula following the mutation of the virus? I took all 3 shots, just curious whether it's more of the same.
  7. Sagittarius A-Star

    COVID MRNA Vaccine Safety: Answer of the European Medicines Agency (EMA)

    On Feb 28th, the anti-vaccination group "Doctors for Covid Ethics" wrote a first open letter with questions to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) regarding safety concerns of mainly mRNA vaccines. They have the hypothesis, that the LNPs of an mRNA vaccine go partly from the injection site into...
  8. V

    B Convince Covid-19 Vaccine Efficiency Through Statistics

    I have been trying to convince someone that it is wrong to compare the death percentages of two different populations (percentage of death of Covid-19 cases per category: vaccinated vs unvaccinated) in an uncontrolled setting (i.e. real-world data), and conclude that the Covid-19 vaccine does...
  9. A

    Quantum dot tattoo vaccine marker

    Hey, I found these interesting articles about a proposed way of vaccinating people while also applying a biomarker on them which would help remember one's vaccination status. https://news.rice.edu/2019/12/18/quantum-dot-tattoos-hold-vaccination-record/...
  10. mktsgm

    Can the AstraZeneca vaccine be called also as a DNA vaccine?

    In my understanding, in the human host, the Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine delivers the DNA genetic code for the production of spike proteins of the SARS-CoV2 virus, inside a vector virus. DNA vaccines deliver them through plasmids. Apart from this delivery mode, is there any difference between the...
  11. berkeman

    COVID New Pfizer vaccine name, "Comirnaty"

    Well, now that the Pfizer vaccine has full FDA approval, they have decided to give it a new name, "Comirnaty". And believe it or not, they actually have reasons for putting that name together... https://www.kron4.com/trending/comirnaty-whats-the-story-behind-the-new-pfizer-vaccine-name/ :-p...
  12. Sagittarius A-Star

    COVID Covid-19 mRNA/LNP Vaccine: understanding Biodistribution

    When mRNA/LNP vaccine gets injected into the upper arm (30 µg for BionTech/Pfizer, 100 µg for Moderna), small amounts get distributed to other organs. Source: https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2021/01/21/mrna-vaccines-what-happens Source...
  13. Evo

    COVID Lambda variant shows vaccine resistance

    Well, if the Delta variant wasn't enough, now this seems to be rearing it's head. Also continued https://news.yahoo.com/delta-infections-among-vaccinated-likely-192553854.html
  14. A

    COVID Weak or non immunity after virus or vaccine

    How can it be that some people develop next to no immunity , cell memory after a Covid infection or vaccination? Immunity develops after the body sees and fights off foreign protein aka virus presenting within the body, so whichever has gotten infected with the virus has to undergo these steps...
  15. G

    COVID Anyone else having a terrible reaction to the COVID vaccine?

    Man this is killing me (figuratively I hope). I know I’m whinging, but I rarely get sick, and here I am experiencing full on flu symptoms along with a slightly discomfortable chest after the 2nd Pfizer. In addition to the sore arm. Being sick sucks, especially when it’s fake sickness meant to...
  16. T

    COVID Boost Response by Delaying Second Dose -- Pfizer vaccine in elderly

    This applies to the Pfizer vaccine. Article dated May 13, 2021. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01299-y Older people who waited 11–12 weeks for their second jab had higher peak antibody levels than did those who waited only 3 weeks. ...could boost antibody responses after the second...
  17. BillTre

    Breakthrough: 75% Effective Malaria Vaccine Discovered

    Several news sites (such as) have reported a 75% effective vaccine (phase 2 test) against malaria, a big killer of humans (greater than 400,000/year). Could not find original report. This will be important if it holds up.
  18. bhobba

    Is the clotting issue with the Oxford vaccine being blown out of proportion?

    I am confused about the 'hoopla' around Oxford's vaccines clotting issue. It is an issue with all the vaccines: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/blood-clotting-needs-to-be-watched-with-all-covid-vaccines-states-the-association-of-american-physicians-and-surgeons-aaps-301262360.html Am...
  19. kyphysics

    Did I "Kill" My Moderna Vaccine?

    VERY DUMB QUESTION: Could I have "killed" my Moderna vaccine (or its efficacy)? I got a Moderna shot at 9AM today. At 10:45, the band aid "rubbed off" my arm when I was doing some moving around. I looked at the wound site and it was just a tiny pink "bump." No bleeding that I could tell. I...
  20. bhobba

    Australia Vaccine Rollout Woes

    If anybody is interested in the woes of the vaccine rollout here in Aus see the following: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-04-04/australia-covid19-vaccine-supply-gaps-void-to-be-filled/100043348 Personally, I would feel a lot better if a logistics expert was in charge of it. We have at least...
  21. bhobba

    Oral Covid Vaccine May Be Game Changer

    Check out: https://www.pfizer.com/news/press-release/press-release-detail/pfizer-initiates-phase-1-study-novel-oral-antiviral If it works out may change the vaccine landscape entirely. Thanks Bill
  22. Greg Bernhardt

    A vaccine targeting mutant IDH1 in newly diagnosed glioma

    Are cancer vaccines a super new thing? I have not heard of a vaccine for cancer before. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03363-z
  23. B

    MRNA Vaccine: How It Works & Questions Answered

    Here is my understanding of how an mRNA vaccine works and some questions where I am not clear: I understand that an mRNA vaccine is delivered via lipid spheres containing the mRNA,. The cell brings it inside the cell thinking it's fat? Then the mRNA is read by the cell machinery to produce the...
  24. T

    COVID Reaction to COVID-19 Vaccine (or what to be prepared for)

    (This added about a month after this thread opened: It turns out I'm a real outlier for side effects to the vaccine, so don't let this post scare you off. My wife says every time I catch a cold or something that it hits me hard. Of course to me that is 'normal.' :doh:) A few days ago a...
  25. neilparker62

    Is Reverse Engineering the Biontech-Pfizer Vaccine Similar to Programming?

    https://berthub.eu/articles/posts/reverse-engineering-source-code-of-the-biontech-pfizer-vaccine/ Would be interested to hear some expert comment on the above. I could not understand much of it but perhaps someone could summarise ? Is the comparison/analogy with computer programming valid?
  26. bhobba

    COVID Oxford Vaccine Approved In Australia

    The Oxford vaccine was approved here in Aus - finally: https://www.tga.gov.au/media-release/tga-provisionally-approves-astrazenecas-covid-19-vaccine It recommends a second dosing 12 weeks apart. The article in the local paper announcing this said with a 12 week second dose it had 82% efficacy...
  27. bhobba

    COVID Interesting Article On How Australia Is Making The Oxford Vaccine

    Hi All Here is how the Aussies are making the Oxford Vaccine: https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2021-02-12/covid-19-vaccine-oxford-astrazeneca-adenovirus-csl-manufacturing/13140104 Thanks Bill
  28. jim mcnamara

    How to create a virus that completely evades vaccine

    Paul Biensiasz is a virologist at Rockefeller Medical, he authored this on twitter, titled "musings of a pissed virologist"
  29. berkeman

    COVID What are the Correlations Between Vaccine Side Effects & Antibody Levels?

    (Sorry if this has already been addressed in one of the other COVID-19 threads. If it has, I can delete my question or merge it into the other thread. Thanks.) I work part-time in EMS, so I was in tier 1A for public vaccinations for COVID-19 here in Northern California. I got my first...
  30. mktsgm

    COVID Proving/disproving vaccine related injuries

    There is a controversy world over, over the vaccine related (or so assumed) deaths and injuries. Suppose a person dies within a few days after vaccination, a doubt may arise in everyone, if the vaccine had induced the death or not. To prove or disprove the complication of vaccine as the real...
  31. Dale

    COVID Pfizer/Moderna covid vaccine research papers

    Here is the official peer reviewed Pfizer vaccine study published in the New England Journal of Medicine: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2034577 This is a follow-up piece that describes what an emergency use authorization means and gives a perspective about follow-up...
  32. Ygggdrasil

    Medical Progress toward a universal flu vaccine

    A paper in Nature Medicine reports data from a phase I clinical trial of a new flu vaccine strategy that targets the stalk of the influenza virus's HA protein, a region that has much less variation between different flu strains...
  33. Drakkith

    Regarding the Low Flu Vaccine Effectiveness Meme

    Good morning everyone. I woke up today and opened up Facebook only to see someone posting a meme about how in 70 years we've only developed a flu vaccine that's 40% effective, yet in 10 months we've developed a COVID-19 vaccine that's 95% effective. The implied meaning here is that the COVID-19...
  34. jim mcnamara

    COVID Astra-Zeneca Covid vaccine trial explanation

    Links for some of the science are included - this presentation is based on press releases. The peer reviewed data will be available shortly. Some things to note - results show both 64% and 90% effective,the video explains this one The tests looked for positive Covid tests in volunteers...
  35. A

    COVID Precisely how does Pfizer's Covid-19 mRNA vaccine work?

    I have some questions about how the Pfizer mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 (BTN for short) works. BTN codes for the SARS Covid-2 spike protein RNA sequence and is somehow delivered into cells, transcribed and then the proteins are delivered to the outer cell membrane or maybe just protrudes through...
  36. T

    SARS-CoV-2 mRNA-1273 Vaccine in Older Adults

    In the New England Journal of Medicine: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2028436 (also has links to supporting documentation) https://www.nejm.org/doi/pdf/10.1056/NEJMoa2028436?articleTools=true A stage 1 trial with 40 volunteers. "After the second immunization, serum neutralizing...
  37. bhobba

    COVID COVID-19 Vaccine Progress: Are We Ready for Rollout in Australia?

    We are starting to reach the stage when vaccines will be rolled out. I thought it was time to start a thread specifically on the state of play. Just an hour ago the following was published by an Australian newspaper (my precis): 'A vaccine will be available in Australia from the middle of...
  38. Grinkle

    COVID Covid Vaccine Phase 3 significance

    Russia's vaccine news has me pondering. How often after a successful phase 2 study do phase 3 studies show that the vaccine causes harm? If I were offered a COVID-19 vaccine that had passed phase 2 trials, I'd accept it. Is that foolhardy of me? Is it possible to use existing data to model...
  39. I

    Is there vaccine non-effectiveness?

    Hello, is there such a thing as a vaccine “not having any effect” on a person, and for some reason making it a “dud” for that specific person? I guess if the dose isn’t strong enough that could be the case, but is there such a thing of the person not “reacting” to those antibodies for some...
  40. BillTre

    An Ebola Vaccine that Seems to Work

    Lancet has a report of a vaccine for the Ebola virus.
  41. B

    Is the Vaccine-Autism Link a Myth? The Truth Behind Vaccines and Autism

    Is it true the vaccine and autism link is completely refuted and the original doctor who mentioned the link made it up? I avoided any flu shots because didn't want to get autism.. see the link: Edit: not valid source http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/concerns/autism.html
  42. berkeman

    Medical Progress on an Alzheimer's vaccine?

    This popular press article is interesting: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-07-world-alzheimer-vaccine.html Here is the scientific article behind the popular article: http://www.nature.com/articles/srep28912 Does anybody have any knowledge of this topic? It would certainly be a great...
  43. Pythagorean

    Case of cancer cured by measles vaccine

    Is this is good as it sounds? http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/05/15/womans-cancer-killed-by-measles-virus-in-unprecedented-trial/
  44. Greg Bernhardt

    Flu vaccine cuts heart attack risk

    New study out http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/10/22/flu-vaccine-heart-attack/3150819/
  45. Borek

    Anti vaccine magazine (or how stupid people can get)

    Typically I don't post the same in more than one place, I will do it this time: http://www.pharmafile.com/news/181169/calls-end-uk-anti-vaccine-magazine Each time I hear about such things I think of the post mortem photography industry that existed at the end of 19th century...
  46. Pythagorean

    Phase I of clinical HIV vaccine trial successful

    note: Phase I is just safety testing, not efficacy. Still exciting, though! http://communications.uwo.ca/media/releases/2013/September/no_adverse_effects_in_volunteers_following_phase_i_clinical_trial_of_sumagen_aids_vaccine.html
  47. S

    How does oral polio virus vaccine shredding in faeces give herd immunity?

    Does this mean if someone comes into contact with faecally contaminated matter of an immunised polio person, that person would also be vaccinated. Thanks :smile:
  48. C

    Medical Is Dog/Animal Rabies Vaccine Dangerous to Humans ?

    A friend of mine was giving his dogs preventative shots of Rabies Vaccine himself due to his village's remote location and no veterinatians in the region. The skin on his hands was exposed to a drops of vaccine while he was administering the syringe. No cuts, scratches etc, just a drop of...
  49. lisab

    Medical The Cytokine Storm: Can a Flu Vaccine Trigger It?

    Can a flu vaccine cause a "cytokine storm"?
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