Katalin Karikó
Hungarian-American biochemist (born 1955) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Katalin "Kati" Karikó (Hungarian: Karikó Katalin, pronounced [ˈkɒrikoː ˌkɒtɒlin]; born 17 January 1955) is a Hungarian-American[2] biochemist who specializes in ribonucleic acid (RNA)-mediated mechanisms, particularly in vitro-transcribed messenger RNA (mRNA) for protein replacement therapy.[3] Karikó laid the scientific groundwork for mRNA vaccines, overcoming major obstacles and skepticism in the scientific community.[1][4] Karikó received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2023 for her work, along with American immunologist Drew Weissman.[5][6]
Katalin Karikó | |
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Born | (1955-01-17) 17 January 1955 (age 69) |
Other names | Kati Kariko[1] |
Citizenship |
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Education | University of Szeged (BSc, PhD) |
Known for | mRNA technology in immunology and therapies |
Spouse | Béla Francia |
Children | Susan |
Awards | Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2023) and several others |
Scientific career | |
Fields |
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Institutions | |
Karikó spent more than twenty years[when?] as a poorly supported researcher at the University of Pennsylvania, where she is an adjunct professor.[7][8] Prior to her winning the Nobel Prize, the University of Pennsylvania had demoted her, cut her pay, and described Karikó as "not of faculty quality"; she was never granted tenure.[9][10] Karikó co-founded and was CEO of RNARx from 2006 to 2013.[7] From 2013 to 2022, she was associated with BioNTech RNA Pharmaceuticals, first as a vice president and promoted to senior vice president in 2019.[11] In 2022, she left BioNTech to devote more time to research.[12] In 2021, she received an honorary doctorate from the University of Szeged in Hungary,[13] where she has since become a professor.[14]
Karikó's work includes scientific research on RNA-mediated immune activation, resulting in the co-discovery with Drew Weissman of the nucleoside modifications that suppress the immunogenicity of RNA.[15][16][17] This is seen as a further contribution to the therapeutic use of mRNA.[18] Together with Weissman, she holds United States patents for the application of non-immunogenic, nucleoside-modified RNA. This technology has been licensed by BioNTech and Moderna to develop their protein replacement technologies, but it was also used for their COVID-19 vaccines.[19]
The messenger RNA-based technology developed by Karikó and the two most effective vaccines based on it, BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna, have formed the basis for the effective and successful fight against SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide and have contributed significantly to the containment of the COVID-19 pandemic.[20][1] For their work, Karikó and Weissman have received numerous other awards besides the Nobel, including the Lasker–DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award,[21] Time Magazine's Hero of the Year 2021,[22] and the Tang Prize Award in Biopharmaceutical Science in 2022.[23][24]