After a brief exchange over who could use the copier next, Drs. Karik and Weissman struck up a conversation. He said he was using DNA to make an HIV vaccine. She argued for RNA. Intrigued, he asked her to join his lab.
Dr. Karik was an expert in RNA but not a physician with immunology expertise. Dr. Weissman was a practicing immunologist but didn't have Dr. Karik's RNA experience. Their combined backgrounds created a perfect environment for shared understanding and research.
In petri dish experiments, Dr. Kariks modified mRNA molecules could instruct cells to make the protein she desired. Her goal was the same when injecting mRNA into mice: New genetic instructions would cause the mice to make a customized protein and elicit an immune response. Unfortunately, the mice experienced harmful inflammation, and some died.
After several more experiments Drs. Karik and Weissman made a breakthrough. They found that modifying part of the mRNA eliminated inflammation. Also, encapsulating the mRNA in tiny lipid (fat) droplets created molecules that, instead of being cast out by the immune system, worked with it to fight disease.
In 2005, Drs. Karik and Weissman published landmark research that explained how mRNA could be altered for therapeutic use. They also revealed how mRNA can be delivered into the body to reach the proper target. Unfortunately, few scientists paid attention. Undeterred, Drs. Karik and Weissman persevered.
Then COVID-19 hit, and the modified mRNA technology developed at Penn Medicine by Drs. Karik and Weissman took center stage. Both Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna licensed Penn technology, which is used in the vaccines now being deployed to combat the virus.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was the first to receive FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) in December 2020 for those 16 or older, and the first COVID-19 vaccine to receive full vaccine approval for the same age group. In May 2021, the EUA was expanded to include adolescents ages 12 to 15. In August 2021 it was amended again to allow for a third dose for certain people who are immunocompromised. The vaccine remains available under EUA for these groups. Moderna Therapeutics, which was granted EUA for its mRNA COVID-19 vaccine in December 2020, also uses the same modified mRNA technology created at Penn.
To date, a combined 360 million doses of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in the U.S. alone. The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is protecting people from the disease in 126 countries across the globe, and 71 countries are using the Moderna vaccine.
Our history of patient care began more than two centuries ago with the founding of the nation's first hospital, Pennsylvania Hospital, in 1751 and the nation's first medical school at the University of Pennsylvania in 1765. Penn Medicine has pioneered medical frontiers with a staff comprised of innovators who have dedicated their lives to advancing medicine through excellence in education, research and patient care.
When you choose Penn Medicine, you benefit from more than two centuries of the highest standards in patient care, education and research. The caliber of comfort and individual attention you receive is unmatched by any other hospital in the Mid-Atlantic region.
We are consistently recognized nationally and internationally for excellence in health care. The cornerstone of our reputation is our medical and support staff, who choose to dedicate their careers to serving the needs of our patients and community.
The Hospitals of the University of Pennsylvania Penn Presbyterian are proud to be ranked #13 in the nation and once again the #1 hospital in Pennsylvania by U.S. News & World Report's Honor Roll of Best Hospitals.
We promote innovation and teaching excellence. We advance medical science through research and create the next generation of leaders in medicine. We're constantly working towards an even more precise and personalized practice of health care.
Improving the health of people living throughout the region we serve is a cornerstone of Penn Medicine's overarching mission to advance knowledge and improve health through patient care, research, and the education of trainees in an inclusive culture that embraces diversity, fosters innovation, stimulates critical thinking, and supports lifelong learning.
We understand the importance of social determinants as they relate to health, education, and wealth. We continue to strive to fully understand the role of racism and biases in health care disparities, ostensibly immovable barriers to achieving equity in health. At Penn Medicine, our code of professionalism, our commitment to inclusion, and our focus on optimal health for everyone, underpins our values and actions.
Among our highest priorities as an organization is ensuring that everyone is safe while fostering an environment that upholds the Action for Cultural Transformation (ACT) values of inclusion, diversity, equity, respect, and cultural humility. We will not tolerate discrimination, hatred, intimidation, or violence that is directed at any member of the Penn Medicine community.
The Penn Center for Health Equity Advancement sets system-wide health equity priorities for both patients and Penn employees to create a learning health system dedicated to achieving equitable patient outcomes and better value, that promotes data-driven solutions to achieve health equity.
To help support these efforts further, the Penn Medicine CAREs Grant was established to offer institutional support to these programs and partner nonprofits in the form of grants that can be used to perform this important work in the community. Whether helping refugees in Lancaster learn English, or buying groceries for homebound West Philadelphia seniors, the CAREs grant funds the initiatives that Penn Medicine faculty, staff, and students care about. View descriptions of programs receiving recent Penn Medicine CAREs Grants.
To comply with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and, more importantly, deepen our understanding of the health needs of our own local community, Penn Medicine Philadelphia-based hospitals (Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Pennsylvania Hospital) completed their most recent Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA)in 2019 in partnership with Philadelphia Department of Public Health, other area health systems, and a robust network of community organizations and residents.
From this needs assessment, a corresponding Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) was developed for the specific needs of the community our Philadelphia-based hospitals serve. Through these targeted efforts, Penn Medicine continually moves forward toward health equity. View past assessments and plans for the Philadelphia-based hospitals.