On the Bright Side of COVID-19: Placentas and Vaccines

Despite the recent spike in coronavirus cases, a glimmer of hope shines in from two recent National Institutes of Health press releases.

First, the NIH says placentas lack major molecules used by COVID-19 to cause an infection. This may explain why it’s (thankfully) very rare to see fetuses and newborns contracting the virus from infected pregnant mothers.

Second, the first phase of an NIH-sponsored COVID-19 vaccine appears to safely generate an immune response in healthy adults.