<p>Germany's BioNTech and US pharma giant Pfizer, which partnered up to develop a Covid-19 vaccine in record time, said Wednesday they are working on a shingles vaccine using the same breakthrough mRNA technology.</p>.<p>The companies have signed a partnership deal and are aiming for clinical trials to start in the second half of 2022, they said in a joint statement.</p>.<p>"The collaboration aims to develop a new mRNA-based vaccine against shingles, leveraging the expertise and resources of both companies," said Ugur Sahin, CEO and co-founder of BioNTech.</p>.<p>The messenger RNA method made its debut with the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, which was the first jab against Covid to be approved in the West in late 2020.</p>.<p>The coronavirus jab developed by US rival Moderna also uses mRNA technology.</p>.<p>Scientists believe mRNA vaccines, which provoke an immune response by delivering genetic molecules containing the code for key parts of a pathogen into human cells, could be a game-changer against many diseases.</p>.<p>They also take less time to develop than traditional vaccines.</p>.<p>BioNTech's Covid-19 shot was developed and approved by regulators in less than a year.</p>.<p>BioNTech is also working on an mRNA-based malaria vaccine backed by the World Health Organization, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the European Union, with trials due to start in late 2022.</p>.<p>Shingles is a common disease around the world caused by reactivation of the same virus that causes chickenpox.</p>.<p>It can lead to extremely painful, disfiguring skin patches, and in rare cases to facial paralysis, deafness and blindness.</p>.<p>While there are currently approved vaccines for shingles, Pfizer and BioNTech said they wanted to develop an improved vaccine that potentially shows high efficacy and better tolerability.</p>.<p><strong>Check out DH's latest videos</strong></p>
<p>Germany's BioNTech and US pharma giant Pfizer, which partnered up to develop a Covid-19 vaccine in record time, said Wednesday they are working on a shingles vaccine using the same breakthrough mRNA technology.</p>.<p>The companies have signed a partnership deal and are aiming for clinical trials to start in the second half of 2022, they said in a joint statement.</p>.<p>"The collaboration aims to develop a new mRNA-based vaccine against shingles, leveraging the expertise and resources of both companies," said Ugur Sahin, CEO and co-founder of BioNTech.</p>.<p>The messenger RNA method made its debut with the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, which was the first jab against Covid to be approved in the West in late 2020.</p>.<p>The coronavirus jab developed by US rival Moderna also uses mRNA technology.</p>.<p>Scientists believe mRNA vaccines, which provoke an immune response by delivering genetic molecules containing the code for key parts of a pathogen into human cells, could be a game-changer against many diseases.</p>.<p>They also take less time to develop than traditional vaccines.</p>.<p>BioNTech's Covid-19 shot was developed and approved by regulators in less than a year.</p>.<p>BioNTech is also working on an mRNA-based malaria vaccine backed by the World Health Organization, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the European Union, with trials due to start in late 2022.</p>.<p>Shingles is a common disease around the world caused by reactivation of the same virus that causes chickenpox.</p>.<p>It can lead to extremely painful, disfiguring skin patches, and in rare cases to facial paralysis, deafness and blindness.</p>.<p>While there are currently approved vaccines for shingles, Pfizer and BioNTech said they wanted to develop an improved vaccine that potentially shows high efficacy and better tolerability.</p>.<p><strong>Check out DH's latest videos</strong></p>