Vaccine does not contain live virus

CLAIM » The vaccine contains the virus. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said this.

THE FACTS » A clip of Johnson mistaking the word “virus” for “vaccine” is being misrepresented online to falsely claim that the vaccine contains the live virus. During a press conference on Dec. 2, Johnson announced that the British government had accepted the vaccine created by Pfizer and BioNTech for distribution. As he was discussing the logistical challenges of distributing the vaccine, including the temperature required to store the vaccine, Johnson misspoke. “The virus has got to be stored at -70 degrees,” he said while talking about the vaccine. Posts online sharing the clip claimed that Johnson “slipped up and told the truth” that the government wanted to inject its citizens with the virus and encouraged British citizens to reject the vaccine. “It’s time to wakey wakey people! The vaxxine is the virus! Boris Johnson tells you straight up! When are you going to believe your eyes & ears? Retweet!!!!!” said one tweet that included the video of Johnson’s gaffe. All the vaccines developed in the U.S. do not contain the live virus and will not cause anyone to test positive for the virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The vaccines work by helping the immune system identify the virus in order to fight it. The Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine and the Moderna vaccine rely on messenger RNA, or mRNA. Each vaccine works by using mRNA to carry a genetic code that works as an instruction card to tell the body to make the “spike protein” that is in the coronavirus. Once the protein is made, the cells get rid of the instructions and the immune system builds an immune response to it.