Question

The central scientific idea that Katalin Kariko believed in from the beginning of her career was ________.

Read the passage and choose the most appropriate answer from the options provided: ​Katalin Karikó fled Hungary in 1985 with her family. She was thirty, held a Ph.D in Biochemistry, and believed in an idea few scientists took seriously: that messenger RNA could train human cells to fight disease. It would take nearly forty years for the world to recognize her belief. ​Leaving communist Hungary, Karikó, her husband, and their two-year-old daughter arrived in the United States with no financial security. Karikó began a postdoctoral job in Philadelphia earning $17,000 a year, supporting a growing family. Early conflicts with a supervisor nearly led to her deportation, and a promised position elsewhere vanished, damaging her professional reputation. ​At the University of Pennsylvania, where she began work in 1989, Karikó persisted with mRNA research despite repeated rejection. Grant applications failed, and mRNA was dismissed as unstable and impractical. In science, the absence of funding often means invisibility. Karikó insisted the issue lay in technique, not the molecule, but few listened. Soon after, her university demanded she abandon mRNA research or accept a demotion. She chose demotion. Her salary stagnated for years, falling below that of lab technicians, and she considered leaving science entirely. ​A turning point came in 1997, when Karikó met immunologist Drew Weissman by chance at a photocopier. They began collaborating quietly, without funding or recognition. Even Weissman faced skepticism. Yet in 2005, they made a breakthrough: modifying mRNA so it would not trigger a harmful immune response. Their discovery enabled mRNA to function safely in the body. ​Top scientific journals rejected their paper, calling it incremental. It was published with little notice. Their patents were undervalued, and Karikó's work remained largely ignored. In 2013, she was forced out of the university and joined a small German biotech company, BioNTech, despite ridicule. ​Then came COVID-19. The long-dismissed technology became the backbone of rapid vaccine development. mRNA vaccines saved millions of lives. ​In 2023, Karikó received a Nobel Prize for work once deemed worthless. She had never been celebrated early, promoted, or encouraged. She persisted because the science mattered. And when the world needed it most, it was ready.

• A. that DNA could permanently alter human genes
• B. that messenger RNA could train human cells to fight disease
• C. that viruses could be eliminated through antibiotics
• D. that proteins were more reliable than nucleic acids

Answer 1

Answer:

B. that messenger RNA could train human cells to fight disease

The passage clearly states that from the start, Karikó believed mRNA could be used to instruct human cells to combat disease, even though few scientists took it seriously.