US government halts mRNA vaccine development projects

美国政府暂停mRNA疫苗研发项目

Newshour

2025-08-06

47 分钟
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单集简介 ...

The US Health Secretary has stopped about $500m worth of funding for the development of mRNA vaccines against viruses that cause illnesses such as flu and Covid-19. Robert F. Kennedy - a vaccine sceptic - claims they pose many risks. Newshour hears from vaccinology professor Dr. Paul Offit who says Mr Kennedy's decision is not based on science. Also in the programme: we hear from a Hiroshima survivor; and the gorilla sisterhood. (Picture: A nurse prepares a booster dose of the Moderna mRNA Covid-19 vaccine, Spikevax, at a vaccination centre in Berlin, Germany, January 1, 2022. Credit: Reuters)
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单集文稿 ...

  • Hello and welcome to NewsHour from the BBC World Service.

  • We're coming to you live from London.

  • I'm Krupa Bhatti.

  • In a moment, we're going to be taking a look at the US decision to stop funding for mRNA vaccines.

  • Now, these are the vaccines which were successfully developed during the COVID pandemic.

  • What are the implications of this move?

  • Also, it is the 80th anniversary of Hiroshima.

  • We're going to be hearing from survivors of that devastating nuclear bomb.

  • And why female gorillas value... new relationships with other females.

  • It has often been assumed that females, gorillas,

  • will not invest so much in those relationships because why invest in a relationship

  • if you or the other member might just emigrate?

  • And here we're showing that dispersal does not have to be the end of the social relationships.

  • Actually, they can, you know, maintain old relationships as well as create new relationships.

  • More on that story in around 20 minutes time.

  • But first,

  • the COVID-19 pandemic brought to light many gaps and many concerns in our global healthcare systems,

  • among them the need for fast and effective vaccine development during public healthcare emergencies.

  • It was the mRNA vaccines developed at speed by scientists and pharmaceutical companies that became the main drivers in saving millions of lives and curbing the spread of COVID-19.

  • the US Department of Health and Human Services has announced plans to wind down its mRNA vaccine development activities,