by Joshua Soll

With all of the buzz around COVID-19 vaccines, it can be difficult to find straightforward answers to your questions. When you google the words “shark squalene in vaccines,” you get a massive mixture of media articles, non-profit blogs, and scientific papers about just that, and the information can be very convoluted. However, what if you simply want to know if shark squalene is being used in the COVID-19 vaccines currently being administered, or that are close to approval for distribution? We are here to help!

Shark squalene is not used in any of the vaccines currently being administered, or that are close to approval for distribution. This includes the vaccines from Moderna, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson (Janssen), and Bharat Biotech. In fact, most of them don’t even use an adjuvant. Unfortunately, the fight is not yet over, as shark squalene is still approved for use. As of May 2021, Vir Biotechnology/GSK’s antibody treatment (called Sotrovimab) was approved, but only for emergency use to treat patients early in the course of disease who are at high risk of developing severe cases. We will be monitoring for any future vaccines that may be produced with shark squalene.

Now, how do these vaccines work?

Moderna and Pfizer have created mRNA-based vaccines, whereas AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson have created DNA-based vaccines. They both work in very similar ways; the mRNA vaccines are just one small step ahead of the DNA vaccines when they enter your cells. The DNA used in the DNA-based vaccines have part of the genetic code for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the virus that causes COVID-19. When injected into your arm, the DNA travels into your cells and through the nucleus, where it is copied onto messenger RNA (mRNA). mRNA is single-stranded RNA that helps make proteins for your body. From this step, both the mRNA and DNA vaccines work practically the same way. The messenger RNA produces parts of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that don’t make you sick. They do, however, create an immune response, in the form of antibodies, to help your body learn to fight off potential future infections. It is important to note that this process does not alter your DNA in any way.

Bharat Biotech’s vaccine, Covaxin, is more of a traditional inactivated vaccine. It uses dead coronaviruses alongside an adjuvant called Alhydroxiquim-II, which does not contain shark squalene. When this vaccine is injected into your arm, the dead viruses travel to your cells. Because they are a dead form of the virus, they don’t come with all of the harmful side effects of being infected, but antibodies are produced to fight them off, creating some level of immunity. The adjuvant in this vaccine serves to boost the human body’s immune response to the dead viruses, thus making the vaccine more effective.

These three different types of vaccines all have been proven effective. However, the mRNA vaccine needs to be stored at very cold temperatures, making it more difficult to correctly distribute and maintain. The DNA and traditional inactivated vaccines can be stored at a higher temperature, making them an overall more ideal vaccine, but inactivated vaccines have been around for much longer than either of the other two types, which may lead to this type being the most preferred for use by much of the world. The risk with this is that inactivated vaccines often need an adjuvant, opening the door for the continuation of the use of shark squalene.

Lastly, we want to stress the importance of getting a vaccine. They are safe and will soon allow us all to return to some level of normalcy. Even if a vaccine contained shark squalene, we would still recommend it, as it is better to get immunized than to not be vaccinated and let the already harvested shark squalene go to waste. We will continue advocating for the replacement of shark squalene in future vaccines and similar products so that they can be safe for both humans and animals alike.

*Please refer to our Science and Research page for all research backing these claims.