The mRNA vaccines developed against COVID-19 owe a lot to the work of Robert Langer, a pioneer in the delivery of mRNA. Langer, who is the Massachusetts Institute of Technology David H. Koch Institute Professor and director of the Langer Lab, helped lay the foundation for the underlying delivery mechanism that has led to the development of the first commercial mRNA vaccines, which can be used for a variety of infectious diseases and conditions. Langer is a co-founder of Moderna, the biotech company that developed an mRNA vaccine against COVID-19. He also has authored more than 1,500 scientific papers and is the most-cited engineer in history.
Langer published the first paper to show that it was possible to deliver nucleic acids like RNA and DNA to the body via tiny particles. He spoke in March 2022 at the 2022 Imagine Solutions Conference in Naples, FL. about his journey from a chemical engineering doctorate to helping develop technology for various lifesaving treatments.
