AI Tool Creates Better mRNA Vaccines

Scientists at Baidu Research’s California division have developed an artificial intelligence tool, called LinearDesign, that creates mRNA sequences for vaccines with intricate structures that are more stable and offer better protection against vaccine degradation. LinearDesign has the potential to optimise the gene sequences found in mRNA vaccines to create jabs that have greater potency and stability and can be deployed globally without the need for ultracold storage facilities.

In validation tests, LinearDesign yielded vaccines that triggered antibody responses up to 128 times greater than those mounted after immunisation with more conventional, codon-optimised vaccines. The tool has been used to optimise at least one authorised vaccine, StemiRNA’s SW-BIC-213 COVID-19 shot, which was approved for emergency use in Laos in 2020.