Katalin Karikó, PhD
2023 Nobel Prize Laureate
Co-Discoverer of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine
Professor, University of Szeged
Professor of Neurosurgery
Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Saturday, April 8, 2023
11am-12:30 pm PST
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Workshop Description:
Dr. Karikó, a renowned scientist and immigrant, discusses her life and work in developing mRNA therapy and vaccination. Her study has advanced our understanding of genetics and contributed to a paradigm shift in treating and preventing disease.
Dr. Karikó will discuss the intricate field of mRNA therapy and vaccinations, delving into the underlying science and elucidating how they function to combat disease. She will talk about coming to the United States as an immigrant and pursuing a career in science, highlighting her difficulties and how she overcame them, such as budget cuts and skepticism from her peers. Despite these obstacles, she stayed dedicated to her job, eventually made significant advances in genetic research, and paved the road for creating mRNA-based medicines and vaccines.
This is a must-attend for everyone interested in mRNA research, whether you are a seasoned expert or just curious about the latest findings. Come help us honor a remarkable woman, mother, and scientist and hear and ask her questions about her journey and the exciting developments in the fight against diseases.
Don’t miss out on the chance to hear Dr. Karikó’s tale, be inspired by her words of wisdom, and, most importantly, ask her questions and get to know her.
About the Speaker:
Katalin Karikó is professor at University of Szeged and adjunct professor of neurosurgery at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, where she worked for 24 years. She is former senior vice president at BioNTech SE, Mainz, Germany, where she worked between 2013-2022. She received her Ph.D. in biochemistry from University of Szeged, Hungary, in 1982.
For four decades, her research has been focusing on RNA-mediated mechanisms with the ultimate goal of developing in vitro-transcribed mRNA for protein therapy. She investigated RNA-mediated immune activation and co-discovered that nucleoside modifications suppress immunogenicity of RNA, which widened the therapeutic potentials of mRNA. She is co-inventor on mRNA-related patents for application of non-immunogenic, nucleoside-modified RNA. Fourteen of those are granted by the US. She co-founded and from 2006-2013 served as CEO of RNARx, a company dedicated to develop nucleoside-modified mRNA for therapy. Her patents, co-invented with Drew Weissman on nucleoside-modified uridines in mRNA is used to create the FDA-approved COVID-19 mRNA vaccines by BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna to fight the pandemic.
In the last 2 years, for her achievement she received more than a hundred prestigious awards, including the Japan Prize, the Horwitz Prize, the Paul Ehrlich Prize, the Benjamin Franklin Medal, the Canada Gairdner International Award, the Kovalenko Medal, the Tang Prize, the Warren Alpert Prize, the Princess Asturias Award, the BBVA Frontiers Award, The German Future Prize, the Breakthrough Prize and the Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award.
View for Free:
Topic: Developing mRNA for Therapy and COVID-19 Vaccine: The Story of An Immigrant
When: Saturday, April 8, 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
YouTube link:
