Written by World Council for Health Correspondent Alice Ashwell, PhD.
Visit worldcouncilforhealth.org/dna to watch the full hearing and sign up for updates about #PlasmidGate as more information becomes available.
A Shocking Discovery
Kevin McKernan is an expert in DNA and RNA sequencing, best known for his role as a team leader in the Human Genome Project.
In 2023, while investigating viral infection in cannabis plants, he happened to use mRNA vaccines as controls in an RNA sequencing experiment. He was shocked to find something completely unexpected: both the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vials were contaminated with plasmid DNA.
Recognising the importance of their discovery, Kevin made the methodology and results available on a pre-print server so that other laboratories could replicate their work without having to wait for publication of the peer-reviewed article.
Since then, multiple laboratories around the world have corroborated their findings. There are also indications that vials containing higher concentrations of DNA are associated with adverse events.
The Big ‘Bait & Switch’
Other researchers had discovered that the vaccines used in the clinical trials were not the same as those rolled out to the public.
While the mRNA used in the trials had been produced in a relatively ‘clean’ process using PCR, mass-production used plasmids in E.coli bacteria to produce the DNA from which the mRNA was transcribed.
Underestimating DNA Contamination
Levels of DNA contamination were unexpectedly high, but detection varied depending on the technology used. The Oxford Nanopore technique, for example, is good at detecting large pieces of nucleic acid, and enabled Kevin’s lab to identify a 3.5 kilobase piece of DNA, representing the entire plasmid. But it is not effective at detecting small fragments, which comprise much of the total mass.
Furthermore, qPCR does not amplify molecules shorter than about 100 bases. So both techniques under-count small fragments. Fluorometry and UV spectrometry, on the other hand, detect any length of DNA and using these techniques reveals ten to a hundred times more DNA.
By using qPCR to detect DNA but fluorometry to measure RNA, manufacturers had managed to mislead the regulators regarding the presence of DNA in the vials!
What’s the Problem with DNA?
The presence of DNA in the shots introduced new risks:
The plasmids were found to contain additional components that were not present in the clinical trials. Sequencing revealed SV40 components that had not been disclosed in the plasmid maps provided to the regulators. The SV40 enhancer present in the plasmid is actually used in gene therapy to drag DNA into the nucleus. As the nucleic acid in the shots is encapsulated in lipid nanoparticles, it can cross the cell membrane into the cell, from where it may be escorted into the nucleus posing a risk of integration into the genome.
The presence of dsDNA may be prothrombotic due to creating an interferon response.
When plasmid DNA is present, there is a possibility of endotoxin contamination from E. coli, which can cause anaphylaxis. When spike protein is expressed, this exacerbates the effect of endotoxin. Furthermore, it is difficult to detect the endotoxin with the normal assays if they are contained within LNPs.
There has been a sharp increase in the risk of cancer since the rollout of the Covid shots. Cancer arises when mutagenesis outpaces the immune system, and generally requires more than one trigger. Three mechanisms contributing to this ‘perfect storm’ include: an increased rate of mutagenesis due to DNA contamination; the disruption by the jabs of the innate immune system; and inhibition of tumor suppressor genes P53 and BRCA1.
A Call to Action
In order to enable more laboratories to investigate DNA contamination of the mRNA shots, Kevin’s team has made their primer sequences public. They are also making about 5,000 kits available to pathologists needing to test tissue samples from people injured by the jabs.
To find out more about the relationship between these Covid mRNA injectables containing DNA fragments and serious adverse events, please see this just-released preprint by Kevin McKernan and colleagues.
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It’s Not Just mRNA in Those Covid Shots! Labs Find Vials Contaminated with Plasmid DNA