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Robert Wallace Malone is an American virologist and immunologist. His work has focused on mRNA technology, pharmaceuticals, and drug repurposing research. During the COVID-19 pandemic he was criticized for promoting misinformation.

Early life and education

Robert Malone graduated from the University of California Davis, and received his MD from Northwestern University.

Career

In the 1980s, while a researcher at the Salk Institute, Malone conducted studies on messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) technology, discovering that it was possible to transfer mRNA protected by a liposome into cultured cells to signal the information needed for the production of proteins. In the early 1990s, he collaborated with Jon A. Wolff, Dennis A. Carson, and others on a study that first suggested the possibility of synthesizing mRNA in a laboratory to trigger the production of a desired protein. Malone claims to be the inventor of mRNA vaccines, although credit for the distinction is more often given to later advancements by Katalin Karikó or Derrick Rossi.

Malone has served as director of clinical affairs for Avancer Group, a member of the scientific advisory board of EpiVax, assistant professor at the University of Maryland Baltimore school of medicine, and an adjunct associate professor of biotechnology at Kennesaw State University. He was CEO and co-founder of Atheric Pharmaceutical, which in 2016 was contracted by the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases to assist in the development of a treatment for the Zika virus by evaluating the efficacy of existing drugs. Until 2020, Malone was chief medical officer at Alchem Laboratories, a Florida pharmaceutical company.

COVID-19

In early 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Malone was involved in research into the heartburn medicine famotidine (Pepcid) as a potential COVID-19 treatment following anecdotal evidence suggesting that it may have been associated with higher COVID-19 survival. Malone, then with Alchem Laboratories, suspected famotidine may target an enzyme that the virus (SARS-COV-2) uses to reproduce, and recruited a computational chemist to help design a 3D-model of the enzyme based on the viral sequence and comparisons to the 2003 SARS virus. After encouraging preliminary results, Alchem Laboratories, in conjunction with New York's Northwell Health, initiated a clinical trial on famotidine and hydroxychloroquine. Malone resigned from Alchem shortly after the trial began and Northwell paused the trial due to a shortage of hospitalized patients.

Malone received criticism for propagating COVID-19 misinformation, including making unsupported claims about the alleged toxicity of spike proteins generated by some COVID-19 vaccines; using interviews on mass media to popularize self-medication with ivermectin; and tweeting a study by others questioning vaccine safety that was later retracted. He said LinkedIn suspended his account over what he claimed were posts he had made questioning the efficacy of some COVID-19 vaccines.

With another researcher, Malone successfully proposed to the publishers of Frontiers in Pharmacology a special issue featuring early observational studies on existing medication used in the treatment of COVID-19, for which they recruited other guest editors, contributors, and reviewers. Malone and most other guest editors resigned in April 2021, when the journal rejected two of the papers selected: one on famotidine co-authored by Malone and another submitted by physician Pierre Kory on the use of ivermectin.

Selected publications

• Malone, Robert; et al. (2021). "COVID-19: Famotidine, Histamine, Mast Cells, and Mechanisms". Frontiers in Pharmacology. 12 (216).
• Malone, Robert; et al. (2016). "Zika Fetal Neuropathogenesis: Etiology of a Viral Syndrome". PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 10 (8).
• Malone, Robert; et al. (2016). "Zika Virus: Medical Countermeasure Development Challenges". PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 10 (3).
• Somiari, Stella; Drabick, Joseph; Malone, Robert; Gillbert, Richard; et al. (2000). "Theory and in Vivo Application of Electroporative Gene Delivery". Molecular Therapy. 2 (3).
• Bennett, Michael; Aberle, Alfred; Nantz, Michael; Malone, Robert; et al. (1997). "Cationic Lipid-Mediated Gene Delivery to Murine Lung:  Correlation of Lipid Hydration with in Vivo Transfection Activity". Journal of Medicinal Chemistry. 40 (25).
• Malone, Robert; Montbriand, Phillip M. (1996). "Improved Method for the Removal of Endotoxin from DNA". Journal of Biotechnology. 44 (1).
• Nantz, Micahel; Gruenert, Dieter; Malone, Robert; et al. (1995). "Cholesterol Enhances Cationic Liposome-mediated DNA Transfection of Human Respiratory Epithelial Cells". Bioscience Reports. 15 (1).
• Hickman, M. Anne; Lehmann-Bruinsma, Karin; Malone, Robert; et al. (1994). "Gene Expression Following Direct Injection of DNA into Liver". Human Gene Therapy. 5 (12).
• Wolff, Jon A.; Williams, Phillip; Malone, Robert; et al. (1990). "Direct Gene Transfer into Mouse Muscle in Vivo". Science. 247 (4949).
• Malone, Robert; Verma, I.M.; et al. (1989). "Cationic Liposome-mediated RNA Transfection". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 86 (16).

References

1. "License Number: D55466 Dr. Robert Wallace Malone". Physician Profile Portal. Maryland Board of Physicians. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
2. ^ Nogueira, Mariana (July 20, 2021). "Robert Malone é o inventor das vacinas de mRNA?". Visão (in Portuguese). Retrieved July 29, 2021.
3. ^ Jacob, Manon (July 13, 2021). "Flawed study misrepresents Covid-19 vaccination fatality rate". Agence France Presse. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
4. Monroe, Linda (March 23, 1990). "Biotech Firm Takes the Simple Route to Gene Therapy Success". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 31, 2021.
5. "About Us". rwmalonemd.com. Robert W. Malone. Archived from the original on June 8, 2021. Retrieved August 1, 2021. Dr. Malone is the discoverer of in-vitro and in-vivo RNA transfection and the inventor of mRNA vaccines, while he was at the Salk Institute in 1988.
6. "From COVID to Malaria: The potential of mRNA vaccines". Deutsche Welle. July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
7. ^ Kertscher, Tom (June 16, 2021). "The COVID-19 vaccines' "spike protein is very dangerous, it's cytotoxic."". Politifact. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
8. Perlman, William (March 8, 2016). "Zika Countermeasure Options Explored". Contagion. MJH Life Sciences. Archived from the original on August 6, 2021.
9. "The Team". www.atheric.com. Atheric Pharmaceutical LLC. Archived from the original on July 14, 2017.
10. Mandell, Josh (December 11, 2016). "The War on Zika". The Daily Progress.
11. Chang, Ailsa (May 12, 2016). "White House Request For Emergency Zika Funding Hits Roadblock In Congress". WBUR-FM. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
12. Szabo, Liz (May 5, 2016). "Researchers look to repurpose approved drugs to treat Zika virus". USA Today. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
13. Anwar, Sarah (March 3, 2017). "Repurposing Licensed Drugs for Use Against the Zika Virus". Contagion. MJH Life Sciences. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020.
14. ^ Lardner, Richard (July 23, 2020). "Pepcid as a virus remedy? Trump admin's $21M gamble fizzled". Washington Post. Associated Press. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
15. ^ Borrell, Brendan (April 26, 2020). "New York clinical trial quietly tests heartburn remedy against coronavirus". Science. doi:10.1126/science.abc4739.
16. "Feinstein Institutes responds to inaccuracies in Associated Press reports". feinstein.northwell.edu. Northwell Health. July 31, 2020.
17. ^ Offord, Catherine (April 28, 2021). "Frontiers Pulls Special COVID-19 Issue After Content Dispute". The Scientist. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
18. "Fact Check-COVID-19 vaccines are not 'cytotoxic'". Reuters. 18 June 2021. Archived from the original on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
19. D'Angelo, Peter (July 4, 2021). "Usa, uno degli scienziati dell'Rna messaggero denuncia: "Censurato da Linkedin" dopo aver espresso preoccupazione sulla trasparenza del governo rispetto ai potenziali rischi dei vaccini. La polemica con Reuters". Il Fatto Quotidiano (in Italian). Retrieved July 29, 2021.
20. Karlis, Nicole (9 August 2021). "How anti-vaxxers weaponized Ivermectin, a horse de-wormer drug, as a COVID-19 treatment". Salon. Archived from the original on 10 August 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2021.

External links

• Official website
• Robert Malone: Repurposing Drugs to Tackle Emerging Infectious Diseases: 2017 discussion for Contagion Live

• Living people
• Northwestern University alumni
• University of California alumni
• American virologists
• American medical researchers