Katalin Karikó facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Katalin Karikó
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Karikó in 2024
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| Born | 17 January 1955 Szolnok, Hungary
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| Other names | Kati Kariko |
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| Education | University of Szeged (BSc, PhD) |
| Known for | mRNA technology in immunology and therapies |
| Spouse(s) | Béla Francia |
| Children | Susan Francia |
| Awards | Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2023) and several others |
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Katalin "Kati" Karikó (Hungarian: Karikó Katalin, pronounced [ˈkɒrikoː ˌkɒtɒlin]; born 17 January 1955) is a Hungarian-American biochemist. She studies how ribonucleic acid (RNA) works, especially a type called messenger RNA (mRNA). Her work helped create mRNA vaccines, even when many scientists doubted her ideas.
In 2023, Karikó won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. She shared this award with American immunologist Drew Weissman for their important discoveries.
From 2006 to 2013, Karikó was a co-founder and CEO of a company called RNARx. Later, she worked at BioNTech RNA Pharmaceuticals from 2013 to 2022, becoming a senior vice president. In 2022, she left BioNTech to focus more on research. She is now a professor at the University of Szeged in Hungary, where she also received an honorary degree.
Karikó's research helped solve a big problem with mRNA: it used to cause strong reactions in the body. She and Drew Weissman found ways to change mRNA so it wouldn't trigger these reactions. This discovery was key for using mRNA in medicines. They hold United States patents for this special mRNA technology. Companies like BioNTech and Moderna used this technology to create their COVID-19 vaccines.
The mRNA technology developed by Karikó and Weissman led to the highly effective BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. These vaccines were crucial in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic around the world. For their groundbreaking work, Karikó and Weissman have received many honors, including the Lasker–DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award and the Tang Prize Award. Time Magazine also named Karikó a Hero of the Year in 2021.
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Early Life and Education
Katalin Karikó was born in Szolnok, Hungary. She grew up in a small town called Kisújszállás. Her childhood home didn't have running water, a refrigerator, or a television. Her father was a butcher, and her mother was a bookkeeper. Katalin was very good at science in school. She even placed third in a national biology competition in Hungary.
Karikó earned her first degree in biology in 1978. She then completed her PhD in biochemistry in 1982. Both degrees were from the University of Szeged. She continued her research at the Institute of Biochemistry in Hungary.
In 1985, her research lab lost its funding. Karikó looked for work in other countries. She was offered a research job at Temple University in the United States. She moved to America with her husband and their two-year-old daughter. They brought only a little money, hidden inside her daughter's teddy bear.
Her Scientific Journey
Between 1985 and 1988, Karikó worked at Temple University in Philadelphia. She was part of a study that used double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) to treat patients with certain illnesses. This was very new research at the time.
In 1988, Karikó accepted a job at Johns Hopkins University. However, her previous advisor caused problems for her. This made it hard for her to get new positions. Luckily, she found a researcher at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland, where she worked from 1988 to 1989. There, she studied signal proteins called interferons.
In 1989, the University of Pennsylvania hired her to work on messenger RNA (mRNA). By 1990, Karikó was an adjunct professor there. She proposed using mRNA for gene therapy, which became her main research focus. However, in the 1990s, many scientists didn't believe in mRNA's potential. Karikó found it hard to get money for her research. Even though she was on track to become a full professor, the university demoted her in 1995 because her grant applications were rejected. Despite this, she decided to stay and continue her mRNA work.
In 1997, she met Drew Weissman, an immunology professor at the University of Pennsylvania. They started working together, sharing ideas and research. Weissman's funding helped Karikó continue her work. Their combined knowledge of immunology and biochemistry was very effective. They faced many challenges but kept pushing forward. Weissman said, "We had to fight the entire way." Karikó's strong will and persistence were truly special in academic research.
Kate was really just unbelievable... She was always incredibly inquisitive. She read voraciously. She would always know the latest technology or the latest paper, even if it was in a totally different area, and she'd put two and two together and say, 'Well why don't we do this?' Or, 'Why don't we try this formulation?'
Before 2005, a big problem with using mRNA in medicine was that it caused inflammation in the body. Karikó had a key idea when she noticed that another type of RNA, called transfer RNA (tRNA), didn't cause this reaction. She and Weissman discovered that by making tiny changes to mRNA, like replacing uridine with pseudouridine, they could stop the immune system from reacting badly. This was a huge breakthrough! Their discovery was first turned down by major science journals but was later published in Immunity.
They also developed a way to deliver mRNA safely into the body. They learned to package mRNA inside tiny fat droplets called lipid nanoparticles. These tiny droplets protect the fragile mRNA molecule until it reaches the right place in the body. They showed that this method worked well in animals.
Karikó and Weissman started a small company called RNARx. In 2006 and 2013, they received United States patents for their modified mRNA technology. The University of Pennsylvania later sold the rights to this technology.
In 2013, Karikó learned about a big deal involving mRNA. She realized she might not get the chance to fully use her mRNA knowledge at the University of Pennsylvania. So, she took a job as vice president at BioNTech RNA Pharmaceuticals. She later became a senior vice president in 2019. She still kept a teaching position at the university.
As of October 2023, Karikó is a professor at the University of Szeged in Hungary.
Impact of Her Discoveries
Karikó's research has had a huge impact on science and medicine. Her work helped lay the foundation for BioNTech and Moderna to create therapeutic mRNAs that don't cause an immune reaction. In 2020, this technology was used to develop the highly effective COVID-19 vaccines by BioNTech (with Pfizer) and Moderna. These mRNA vaccines were developed and approved incredibly fast. They showed over 90% effectiveness in preventing COVID-19.
Besides vaccines for diseases, mRNA technology has potential uses in treating cancer, heart problems, and metabolic diseases. It could lead to a whole new class of medicines.
Awards and Honors
Katalin Karikó has received more than 130 international awards and honors. These recognize her pioneering and globally important work in biochemistry.
On October 2, 2023, the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute announced that the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine was awarded to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman. This was for their development of mRNA technology.
In April 2024, Katalin Karikó donated the prize money she received from her Nobel Prize to her former university, the University of Szeged.
In 2022, Karikó and Drew Weissman also received The Novo Nordisk Prize. This was for their important work over more than ten years in discovering how to modify mRNA.
In 2023, Karikó was added to the National Inventors Hall of Fame for her mRNA research. She was also named one of the 100 most influential people in health by Time magazine in 2024. In December 2024, the BBC included her on their 100 Women list.
Personal Life
Katalin Karikó is married to Béla Francia. They have a daughter, Susan Francia, who is a two-time Olympic gold medalist in rowing. Their grandson was born in the U.S. in February 2021.
Media and Her Story
In April 2021, The New York Times wrote about her career. They highlighted how her work laid the groundwork for mRNA vaccines to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The Daily podcast from The New York Times also featured her story in June 2021. It focused on the many challenges she overcame before her work was recognized.
In November 2021, Glamour magazine named her a Woman of the Year.
In 2023, two children's books were released about her: Never Give Up: Dr. Kati Karikó and the Race for the Future of Vaccines and Kati's Tiny Messengers: Dr. Katalin Karikó and the Battle Against COVID-19.
Katalin Karikó's autobiography, titled Breaking Through: My Life in Science, was published in October 2023, shortly after she won the Nobel Prize. It became the best-selling non-fiction book in Hungary in 2023 and has been translated into nine languages.
See also
In Spanish: Katalin Karikó para niños
- Tozinameran – The COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer BioNTech, also known as Comirnaty
- Uğur Şahin, a co-founder of BioNTech
- Özlem Türeci, a co-founder of BioNTech
