DNA beats hepatitis

A vaccine made from DNA has for the first time produced a protective immune
response. Eleven patients vaccinated against hepatitis B virus produced copious
antibodies. “If antibodies are raised to these levels, individuals are presumed
to be protected,” says Russ Smestad of PowderJect Vaccines in Madison,
Wisconsin. The vaccine—microscopic gold beads coated with viral
DNA—was shot through the skin using compressed helium. Proteins made by
the DNA trigger antibody production.