CHICAGO — U.S. biotech firm Moderna's coronavirus vaccine has successfully triggered an immune response in all volunteers against COVID-19 during preliminary testing, according to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine.
After the vaccine is injected, the mRNA orders the body's cells to make proteins that imitate the structure of the coronavirus's spike proteins. Then the body's immune system learns to recognize the viral proteins as the mark of invading pathogens.
The first phase trial tested the shot on three groups of 15 volunteers and a different dosage was used for each group. Some volunteers received two shots spaced 28 days apart.
According to Moderna, trial participants with two doses of the vaccine displayed antibody levels that are higher than the average level found in recovered patients of COVID-19.
The vaccine had side effects. Three of the volunteers on the highest dosage had severe fever, chills, headaches, or nausea. One participant suffered fevers that ran as high as 39.6 degrees Celcius or about 103 Fahrenheit.
