They told her she would never succeed, now her work has saved millions. In this episode, Ryan talks with Dr. Katalin Karikó, the scientist behind the mRNA technology that led to COVID-19 vaccines. She grew up in rural Communist Hungary, faced rejection after rejection, got demoted, and struggled financially but she never stopped chasing the science.

Dr. Katalin Karikó opens up to Ryan about her experiences as an immigrant in the U.S., the grind of scientific discovery, enjoying the process rather than focusing solely on outcomes, misinformation in the scientific community, and the responsibility of scientists to communicate effectively with the public.

Dr. Katalin Karikó is a Hungarian American biochemist who specializes in RNA-mediated mechanisms. She won the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with her colleague Dr. Drew Weissman for their discoveries concerning nucleoside base modifications that enabled the development of effective mRNA vaccines against COVID-19.

Read the New York Times feature on Dr. Katalin Karikó here

Follow Dr. Katalin Karikó on Instagram @katalin_kariko

Check Dr. Katalin Karikó’s memoir Breaking Through: My Life in Science

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Re-run 04 Storytelling:Why Storytelling Needs The Thumpty-Thum-Thump-Thump