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mRNA vaccine myths – anti-vax pseudoscience on COVID-19 vaccines

mrna vaccine myths
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Unless you have been hiding out in the secret cancer cure vault hidden in Greenland, you know that anti-vaxxers are pushing mRNA vaccine myths as the new vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna get closer and closer to q1.

These myths are more serious this time because we need to get herd immunity from vaccines (not from genocide). If we don’t vaccinate enough people, because too many people remain hesitant because of these mRNA vaccine myths, then we may be wearing masks for years.

I haven’t read all of the lies, tropes, and myths from the anti-vaccine crowd regarding various coronavirus vaccines, especially the mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna.

Right now, there are just a handful of these mRNA vaccine myths, but I plan to add to this article as new ones are uncovered. I’m going to do my best to cut off these lies as soon as I can.

Continue reading “mRNA vaccine myths – anti-vax pseudoscience on COVID-19 vaccines”


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ACIP COVID-19 vaccine priority proposal – healthcare workers first

ACIP COVID-19 vaccine priority
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On 1 December 2020, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) COVID-19 vaccine priority recommendations were discussed. As I have written recently, Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca all have announced that their vaccines exhibited high effectiveness and safety during phase 3 clinical trials, while both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are seeking emergency use authorizations (EUA) from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), so these vaccines may become available within a few weeks.

This is a brief review of the ACIP and CDC COVID-19 vaccine priority lists for the first tranches of vaccines.

Continue reading “ACIP COVID-19 vaccine priority proposal – healthcare workers first”


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Will the Pfizer Moderna AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines end the pandemic?

Pfizer Moderna AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines
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There has been a lot of excitement lately with the Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, and AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccines lately, but I wanted to temper your enthusiasm thinking the pandemic is going to be over in a few weeks, and we can all hit the pub, drinking with our friends, family, and neighbors. 

If anything, I would strongly recommend wearing a face mask across the world until a substantial number of people are vaccinated, and that may take a lot longer than you thought. By the way, more recent scientific evidence supports the FACT that when both individuals are masked, there is almost no transmission of viruses. 

So, let me explain why, despite the good news, we still need to protect ourselves from the coronavirus. There is light at the end of the tunnel, but don’t be confused by the recent announcements by Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Moderna regarding their COVID-19 vaccines – there is still a lot of hard work to be done.

Continue reading “Will the Pfizer Moderna AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines end the pandemic?”


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mRNA vaccines will harm your DNA!!! Nope, more anti-vaxxer nonsense

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Once the new COVID-19 mRNA vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna were both announced to have very high safety and effectiveness, the anti-vaccine religion began its disinformation campaign using fear, uncertainty, and doubt. I won’t link to any of those ignoramuses who are posting this garbage, because I don’t want them to have any traffic that comes from this article. But I am sure if you’re following the world of COVID-19 vaccines, you have heard some of it.

I’m going to delve into the world of mRNA vaccines while trying to refrain from giving a cell biology lecture. Unfortunately, it’s going to take a cell biology lecture to explain how mRNA vaccines work, and how there are no biologically plausible reasons to hypothesize that mRNA vaccines can harm your DNA. None. Nada. Nichts.

Continue reading “mRNA vaccines will harm your DNA!!! Nope, more anti-vaxxer nonsense”


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COVID-19 religious gatherings – Supreme Court prevents NY from enforcing limits

COVID-19 religious gatherings
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This article, about a recent Supreme Court decision that prevents New York from enforcing limits on religious gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic, was written by Dorit Rubinstein Reiss, Professor of Law at the University of California Hastings College of the Law (San Francisco, CA), who is a frequent contributor to this and many other blogs, providing in-depth, and intellectually stimulating, articles about vaccines, medical issues, social policy, and the law.

Professor Reiss writes extensively in law journals about the social and legal policies of vaccination. Additionally, Reiss is also a member of the Parent Advisory Board of Voices for Vaccines, a parent-led organization that supports and advocates for on-time vaccination and the reduction of vaccine-preventable disease. She is also a member of the Vaccines Working Group on Ethics and Policy.

On November 24, 2020, the Supreme Court ordered temporary relief preventing Governor Cuomo and New York officials from enforcing limits on gathering imposed on religious houses during the COVID-19 pandemic (Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, New York v. Andrew M. Cuomo). The decision, as the dissents pointed out, raises concerns about the ability of states to limit religious activities in the interest of protecting believers – and the broader public – from diseases. But the per curiam opinion makes relatively limited changes to our First Amendment jurisprudence, though it may signal that the court will, in the future, change it, and does not at present change the legal framework governing vaccine mandates. Continue reading “COVID-19 religious gatherings – Supreme Court prevents NY from enforcing limits”


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Turkey, tryptophan, and sleep – the myth that keeps on giving

turkey tryptophan sleep
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The old turkey, tryptophan, and sleep myth appears every year on the fourth Thursday in November, the United States celebrates a holiday called Thanksgiving. You’ll hear about it over and over and over.

Basically, after eating mountains of food, including turkey, one of the guests at the table (which shouldn’t happen this year) will pontificate about how eating turkey, which they claim is high in tryptophan, makes everyone want to sleep after the meal. 

Continue reading “Turkey, tryptophan, and sleep – the myth that keeps on giving”


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COVID-19 vaccine recommendations being developed by CDC and ACIP

COVID-19 vaccine recommendations
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On November 23, 2020, new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 vaccine recommendations were discussed during an emergency meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). As I discussed recently, Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca all have announced that their vaccines exhibited high effectiveness and safety during phase 3 clinical trials.

This is a brief review of what ACIP and CED are “thinking” regarding COVID-19 vaccine recommendations.

Continue reading “COVID-19 vaccine recommendations being developed by CDC and ACIP”


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AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine shows 70% effectiveness in phase 3

astrazeneca COVID-19 vaccine
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AstraZeneca has announced that its COVID-19 vaccine has exhibited over 70% average effectiveness in phase 3 clinical trials in Brazil and the United Kingdom. The vaccine was initially developed by the University of Oxford, but AstraZeneca will manufacture and distribute the vaccine worldwide.

The AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is the third vaccine over the past few days that has shown extremely high effectiveness following the ones announced by Pfizer and Moderna. However, the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine is substantially different in pharmacology and distribution than the other two. 

Continue reading “AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine shows 70% effectiveness in phase 3”


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Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine review scheduled for December 10 by FDA

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The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine review meeting for its Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) on 10 December 2020. It is intended to discuss and review the emergency use authorization (EUA) for the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

Continue reading “Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine review scheduled for December 10 by FDA”


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Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for COVID-19 – differences and similarities

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If you are an American, you probably could not avoid noticing the news that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for COVID-19 have shown >90% effectiveness in preventing the disease over the short-term. And both companies would probably be seeking an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) in the USA for use of their vaccines in groups who are most in need of protection from COVID-19. 

Even though I’ve discussed the positive and negative points about the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines, I think it’s important to highlight the similarities and differences between the two vaccines. Also, please note that these vaccines probably will be released first in the USA, especially Moderna who received support from the Federal Government through Operation Warp Speed (Pfizer opted out of it). There are several other vaccines in phase 3 clinical trials that could be seeking a EUA sometime in the near future in the USA and Europe. 

COVID-19 vaccine candidates in phase 3 clinical trials – the official list

Moreover, there are over 200 COVID-19 vaccine candidates in development, with dozens in phase 1 and phase 2 clinical trials. By early 2022, we could be comparing 10 or 15 vaccines that might be entering the market. 

But this article is just going to focus on the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines. I’m going to hit the key similarities and differences between the two vaccines. I may conclude with my opinion on which one will be successful, but we might not know for years which of all of these vaccines are the “best.”

Continue reading “Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for COVID-19 – differences and similarities”


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