The Rapid Development of COVID-19 Vaccines

Vaccines to prevent COVID-19 were developed within 1 year after the identification of SARS-CoV-2 as the causative virus. There are now 3 vaccines that are FDA approved via Emergency Use Authorization. This talk will highlight how one of those vaccines was developed. It will focus on how rapid development of the vaccines were attained while still testing them rigorously for safety. It will also show how these vaccines work as well as present safety, efficacy, and immune data. It will end with a brief discussion on which vaccines have been developed and shown to be effective in preventing COVID-19 across the world.

Learning Objectives: 

1. Understand how mRNA vaccines work

2. Understand how COVID-19 vaccines were approved so rapidly without impacting their safety