DNA Impurities in Gene-Based Therapies

October 21, 2025

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During the recent Zelenko Memorial Grand Rounds, Dr. JessicaRose, a researcher with advanced degrees in applied mathematics, immunology,computational biology, molecular biology, and biochemistry, presented evidencethat has gained attention in scientific circles around the world. Her study,published in the Journal of Autoimmunity, analyzed vials of the Pfizerand Moderna COVID-19 vaccines and found measurable amounts of DNA contaminationin every sample tested.

Dr. Rose explained that these findings are not isolated.Laboratories in countries such as Germany, the United States, Canada, andAustralia have all reproduced similar results. Reproducibility, she emphasized,is essential to science—it is what gives findings credibility. The presence ofDNA fragments in the vaccines was not an unexpected discovery for regulators,she said, but a known issue that had been flagged years ago without meaningfulcorrection.

How DNA Entered the Vaccines

Dr. Rose described in detail how this contamination likelyoccurred. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were originally developed using aprocess that involved nucleoside-modified mRNA encapsulated in lipidnanoparticles. When production was scaled up for global distribution,manufacturers adopted a system that used E. coli bacteria to produce thegenetic material more rapidly and at a lower cost.

According to Dr. Rose, this shift introduced a new risk. TheE. coli plasmids used in production carried bacterial DNA that needed tobe fully removed before final packaging. The cleaning process, known as DNAdigestion, involves enzymes that break down leftover DNA. However, because ofhow the modified RNA bonds to DNA, this cleanup may have been incomplete. As aresult, fragments of bacterial DNA remained in the final product.

She also noted that some of these DNA fragments wereencapsulated within lipid nanoparticles—the same technology used to delivermRNA into human cells. This means that the DNA fragments could enter cells moreeasily than naked DNA, raising potential safety questions that have not beenadequately addressed by manufacturers or regulators.

Concerns About Health Implications

Dr. Rose’s presentation explored the possible consequencesof introducing foreign DNA into human cells. She emphasized that whileintegration of this DNA into the genome has not yet been proven, the riskcannot be dismissed. Such fragments can activate inflammatory andcancer-related pathways, particularly if they disrupt genes like p53, a keytumor-suppressor gene.

She highlighted that one of the DNA sequences detected inPfizer’s vaccine includes an element known as the SV40 promoter, which istypically used in gene therapy to move genetic material into the nucleus ofcells. This inclusion, she said, was unnecessary for vaccine production andraises serious questions about manufacturing choices.

According to Dr. Rose, the presence of the SV40 promotercould interfere with normal cellular functions and may contribute to geneticinstability. She argued that these risks should have been foreseen andprevented, pointing out that regulators had already warned Pfizer to addressDNA impurities as early as 2021.

Rising Concerns in Safety Data

Throughout her talk, Dr. Rose connected her laboratoryfindings to broader patterns emerging in vaccine safety databases. Shediscussed her analysis of the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS),where she noted increases in reports of rare and aggressive cancers since 2021.This rise is particularly concerning, she said, because vaccination rates havedecreased while cancer-related reports continue to climb.

Dr. Rose also described a separate trend she observed inreports of genetic mutations following COVID vaccination. Before 2021, suchreports were nearly nonexistent. By 2021, however, there were 27 reports—anincrease she said qualifies as a safety signal that should be investigatedfurther.

A Call for Transparency

Dr. Rose concluded that these findings point to a deeperproblem within the current medical and regulatory environment. The evidence ofcontamination has been published and peer-reviewed, yet researchers who raiseconcerns are often attacked or censored. She called for open scientificdiscussion and further study to determine the real-world impact of DNAcontamination in these vaccines.

She also stressed the need for tumor sequencing inindividuals who developed cancer after vaccination, explaining that onlythrough such analysis can researchers confirm or rule out whethervaccine-derived DNA played a role.

Dr. Rose’s message was clear: the scientific community mustacknowledge what has been found, investigate it honestly, and prioritizetransparency over profit or politics. Her presentation served as both atechnical explanation and a warning about the consequences of rushing medicalinnovation without full accountability.

Continuing the Conversation

The discussion that followed reflected both alarm anddetermination among physicians and researchers attending the event. Many agreedthat the issue demands further investigation and public awareness. While somequestions remain unanswered, Dr. Rose’s work underscores the importance ofmaintaining integrity in medicine and ensuring that safety standards match thetechnologies being used.

The presentation reminded everyone that real science isbuilt on openness and reproducibility, not censorship or convenience—a lessonwith implications far beyond the COVID era.

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