There is a lot of hubbub about RNA vaccines & I'm an RNA biologist

RNA is the message made from DNA that tells our body what proteins the cell should make. If DNA is the waiter, then RNA is the restaurant ticket to tell the body what dish (protein) to make 1/3

The #Pfizer and #Moderna RNA vaccines work by providing a ticket for the body to make the spike protein on the outside of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Once the body makes this protein, it can recognize the protein as foreign if it is ever exposed to a lot of the virus 2/3

Because the vaccine just provides a set of protein instructions for our body to make the vaccine is NOT targeting human RNA. Over time, the RNA will degrade in our body (like normal RNA does) so RNA vaccines do not affect our genetic code. They act to prime our immune system 3/3