No, the COVID vaccine cannot give you the virus. And here’s why
America’s first coronavirus vaccine will likely be authorized before the end of this week, health experts say, which could signal the beginning of the end of a long battle with COVID-19.
The vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech is expected to be authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Thursday when it meets to review clinical trial data. The FDA is going to meet again on Dec. 17 to review another vaccine by biotechnology company Moderna.
Both candidates have efficacy rates above 90% and have been shown to be safe. They also both use a technology that has never been licensed for any other vaccine, making the one for COVID-19 the first if given the green light from health officials.
On Tuesday, the United Kingdom vaccinated the first two people in the world, aside from clinical trial participants, with the Pfizer coronavirus shot, McClatchy News reported. The country was the first to authorize a COVID-19 vaccine on Dec. 2.
But how do the vaccines work?
The vaccines release messenger RNA, or mRNA — a subtype of RNA, which makes up the coronavirus’s genetic material — into our cells. This mRNA carries directions that teach our cells to pump out harmless proteins similar to those the coronavirus uses to infect people.
This is different from injecting a live (weakened) virus or an inactivated (killed) virus into your body, like other vaccines either do today or have done in the past.
After our cells make copies of these unique proteins, they destroy any left over genetic material the vaccine pumped in your cells, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.
Meanwhile, special cells in our immune system recognize the proteins as foreign invaders and send signals to other immune cells to fight them off. And so comes the birth of tiny antibodies that now know how to spot and kill these proteins if they ever enter the body again.
Here are some other facts about the COVID-19 vaccine:
No, the COVID-19 vaccine cannot give you coronavirus
Both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines do not release live virus, which means they cannot give someone COVID-19 or make them contagious in anyway.
“However, the goal for each of them is to teach our immune systems how to recognize and fight the virus that causes COVID-19,” the CDC says. “Sometimes this process can cause symptoms, such as fever. These symptoms are normal and are a sign that the body is building immunity.”
This also means you cannot test positive for coronavirus after taking a diagnostic test, but there is a chance you can test positive on some antibody tests once vaccinated.
The vaccine’s job is to teach your body how to make antibodies against the coronavirus, so if your body develops an immune response like it’s supposed to, an antibody test might detect them depending on when a test is taken, the CDC says.
This is a good sign, experts say, because that means the vaccine has provided some level of protection against the virus, although scientists aren’t yet certain for how long.
No, the COVID-19 vaccine cannot alter your DNA
The mRNA the vaccine releases into your body never enters the nuclei of your cells. That’s where your genetic material, or DNA, is located.
“This means the mRNA does not affect or interact with our DNA in any way,” the CDC says. “Instead, COVID-19 vaccines that use mRNA work with the body’s natural defenses to safely develop protection (immunity) to disease.”
Yes, the coronavirus vaccine may still benefit COVID-19 survivors
Scientists won’t know how long immunity provided by a vaccine will last until more data is collected, but given re-infection is possible, experts say getting vaccinated can help those who already had COVID-19.
“The immunity someone gains from having an infection, called natural immunity, varies from person to person. Some early evidence suggests natural immunity may not last very long,” the CDC says.
So, getting the vaccine can prevent one from getting sick with COVID-19 a second time, like a handful of cases have shown.
This story was originally published December 8, 2020 at 3:11 PM with the headline "No, the COVID vaccine cannot give you the virus. And here’s why."
