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  • 2021-04-12 (xsd:date)
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  • Is 'Luciferase' the Name for the COVID-19 Vaccine? (en)
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  • In the spring of 2021, COVID-19 and vaccine conspiracy theorists enthusiastically shared a meme that claimed one or all of the COVID-19 vaccines available at that time were called luciferase, and effectively warned readers not to accept them due to satanic connotations or associations. The meme, shared widely on Facebook in March and April 2021, read as follows: Are you going to get the shot called LUCIFERASE with a patent number 060606 and digital program called INFERNO? Luciferase is a real scientific term that describes a group of naturally occurring enzymes that, under the correct conditions, cause the emission of light. However, the meme was grossly misleading and inaccurate in several ways: No COVID-19 vaccine is called luciferase, and no COVID-19 vaccine contains luciferase. Rather, luciferase has been used in some COVID-19-related research. Furthermore, the concerns over the name of the enzyme were irrational and appeared to be based on a lack of understanding of the origins of the word. On the whole, we're issuing a rating of False as to the claim that COVID-19 vaccines are called luciferase. Luciferase refers to a group of enzymes (substances that trigger chemical reactions), which act upon a type of chemical compound called luciferins, with the result being bioluminescence — that is, the emission of light by a living organism. The most common example of the work of luciferase is found in fireflies. Luciferase enzymes and luciferin compounds were discovered in the late 19th century by French scientist Raphaël Dubois. Their names are derived from the Latin roots lux, meaning light, and fero, meaning to bring or carry — thus, light-bearing. So, contrary to the misplaced fears of a satanic association or connotation underlying the meme, the Lucifer of the Christian tradition merely has the same etymological roots as luciferase enzymes and luciferin compounds. No COVID-19 vaccine is called luciferase and neither do any of them contain the enzymes in question, as shown in the full ingredient lists for the Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccines. In reality, the only link between luciferase and COVID-19 vaccines is that some research has used the enzymes to study issues related to COVID-19 and vaccine candidates. Because of the light-emitting properties of luciferase, they are useful in tracking biological processes. In 2020, for example, researchers in the laboratory of Pei-Yong Shi at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston used luciferase in both diagnosing the presence of COVID-19 antibodies in subjects, but also in testing the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccine candidates. Texas Medical Center wrote at the time that: Researchers at the University of South Florida also used luciferase to track the effect and spread of the COVID-19 virus within the body. Tom McDonald explained the research as follows: The second component of the meme — the claim that COVID-19 vaccines have a patent number 060606 — is also inaccurate and one we have examined in greater detail previously. (en)
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