Health Rounds: Experimental approach uses AI to eliminate cold storage for mRNA vaccines

By Nancy Lapid Oct 7 (Reuters) With all the dire predictions about AI s potential to wipe out humanity, today we highlight two studies that use the technology for potential medical advances. We also report on a discovery at the cellular level that explains how tobacco smoke exposure can lead to lung cancer. ROOM-TEMPERATURE STORAGE OF MRNA VACCINES MAY BE NEAR Using artificial intelligence, researchers may have found a way to make vaccines based on mRNA technology, such as Moderna s and Pfizer s COVID shots, storable ​at room temperature, which would lower costs and make them available in regions where ultra-cold storage is not possible. Presently, mRNA vaccines, including Moderna s new flu shot, must be ‌stored at extremely low temperatures, typically ranging from -40 to -123 degrees Fahrenheit (-40 to -86 Celsius). That is because messenger RNA is extremely fragile and breaks down easily at higher temperatures. With help from artificial intelligence, researchers tweaked the formula