Drew Weissman, MD, PhD
Drew Weissman, MD, PhD
Sees patients age 18 and up
Penn Medicine Provider
About me
- Roberts Family Professor in Vaccine Research
Drew Weissman, MD, PhD, is a world-renowned physician and researcher at Penn Medicine, best known for his contributions to RNA biology and the COVID-19 vaccines. Weissman and Katalin Karikó, PhD, were jointly awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine for their discoveries that enabled the modified mRNA technology being used in Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna's vaccines to prevent COVID-19.
More than 15 years ago at Penn Medicine, Weissman and Karikó found a way to modify mRNA and later developed a delivery technique to package the mRNA in fat droplets called lipid nanoparticles. This ensured that it could reach the proper part of the body and trigger the immune system to fight disease.
These laboratory breakthroughs made mRNA safe, effective, and practical for use as a vaccine against COVID. The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine received FDA approval in August 2021, and the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized by the FDA for emergency use.
Dr. Weissman and his team are currently at work on a pan-coronavirus vaccine to stop the next coronavirus epidemic, a universal flu vaccine, and a vaccine to prevent herpes. They are working with Penn colleagues to develop cancer therapeutics with mRNA technology. Weissman's lab is also developing a SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine with Chulalongkorn University in Thailand to help residents of Thailand and other surrounding nations with fewer financial resources than the United States access lifesaving vaccines.
Before joining Penn in 1997, Weissman was a fellow at the National Institutes of Health studying HIV in the lab of Dr. Anthony Fauci. Weissman received his bachelor's degree and master's degree from Brandeis University. He earned his MD and PhD from Boston University and completed his residency at Beth Israel Hospital.
My education and training
- Boston University School of MedicineMedical School
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical CenterResidency
- National Institutes of HealthFellowship
Spoken languages
English
English
Insurance accepted
Please contact the practice and/or the member services department of your insurance company for specific details before receiving services. Providers may participate in some, but not all, products offered by a health plan; providers may also accept plans at some practice locations but not others.
Penn Medicine hospital privileges
- Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania: On the medical staff, but does not have privileges to treat patients in the hospital.
Dr. Weissman is a Penn Medicine physician.
Qualifications and experience
- American Academy of Arts and Sciences, International
- American Federation for Clinical Research, National
- Association of American Physicians, National
- National Academy of Inventors, National
- National Academy of Medicine, International
- The American Association of Immunologists, National
Treatments and conditions
Research
Publications
Meshanni, JA, Sun, R, Berkihiser, SE, Abramova, E, Guo, CJ, Moore, NC, Laskin, DL, Weissman, D, Atochina-Vasserman, EN, Gow, AJ Characterization of responses to bleomycin-induced acute lung injury female BALB/c mice , Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta-molecular Basis Of Disease, 1873(1): 2027
Saithong, S, Prompetchara, E, Ketloy, C, Khawsang, C, Tharakhet, K, Kaewpang, P, Yostrerat, N, Wangsoontorn, P, Charsangbong, K, Lam, K, Heyes, J, Weissman, D, Ruxrungtham, K Preventive and therapeutic efficacy of mRNA/LNP vaccines encoding HPV16 E6 and E7 in an early-intervention HPV tumor mouse models , Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, 22(1): 2026
Lin, MQ, Denton, S, Duan, N, Iqbal, N, Boyaka, PN, Dwivedi, G, Alameh, MG, Weissman, D, Rikihisa, Y Efficacy and immunological correlates of an mRNA-LNP vaccine for protection against an emerging rickettsial pathogen , Emerging Microbes & Infections, 15(1): 2026
Sandoval, MA, Li, Q, Shi, RQ, Giri, BR, Yanwinitchai, S, Southard, B, Ni, HP, Owens, DE III, Williams, RO III, Weissman, D, Cui, ZR Effect of thin-film freezing process parameters and excipient composition on mRNA lipid nanoparticles in inhalable powders , International Journal Of Pharmaceutics, 703: 2026
Semon, A, Manzer, HS, Keenan, O, Zhou, TH, Tiffany, C, She, QX, Knight, M, Weiss, AS, Donohoe, K, Morrow, BT, Glover, RC, Kovalik, ME, Tanes, C, Bittinger, K, Zemel, BS, Wu, GD, Silverman, MA, Gerber, JS, Rodríguez, RC, Lacy, DB, Karakasheva, TA, Alameh, MG, Weissman, D, Schultz-Cherry, SL, Rosch, JW, Planet, PJ, Moustafa, AM, Furth, EE, Abt, MC, Kelsen, JR, Conrad, MA, Hamilton, KE, Zackular, JP Early-life colonization with Clostridioides difficile remodels the developing gut , Science, 393(6815): 2026,1045-1052
Marchitto, L, Wagh, K, Roark, RS, Coleon, S, Li, H, Skelly, AN, Hogarty, MP, Habib, R, Ding, W, Ayyanathan, K, Liu, WM, Sheng, ZZ, Guo, YC, Bal, J, Smith, LM, Sutherland, LL, Park, Y, Connell, AJ, Bibollet-Ruche, F, Lewis, E, Plante, SJ, Akeley, MJ, Lora, J, Zhao, CY, Carey, JW, Martella, CL, Li, YY, Campion, MS, Lituchy, MG, Osbaldeston, RA, Gordon, CG, Albertus, A, Su, J, Noguchi, C, Tam, YK, Barbosa, C, Liang, B, Amereh, K, Li, XD, Walsh, AA, Irvine, DJ, Andrabi, R, Edwards, RJ, Kreider, EF, Weissman, D, Shapiro, L, Kwong, PD, Korber, BT, Haynes, BF, Saunders, KO, Hahn, BH, Shaw, GM Enhanced B cell priming induces broadly neutralizing HIV-1 apex antibodies , Nature, 656(8128): 2026
Padilla, MS, Li, JJ, Zhang, QZ, Patwari, K, Shi, SH, Yamagata, HM, Joseph, RA, Hymms, BN, Teerdhala, SV, Fitzgerald, E, Chalom, OZ, Gupta, K, Alameh, MG, Weissman, D, Le, AD, Mitchell, MJ Lipid Nanoparticle Co-Delivery of mRNA and a Small Molecule Drug for Oral Cancer Chemoimmunotherapy , Advanced Materials, 38(47): 2026
Reagan, EK, Wright, DA, Clark, KE, Mercado-Lopez, X, Atochina-Vasserman, EN, Ni, HP, Mui, BL, Hu, FL, Bailey, JR, Bar, KJ, Weissman, D mRNA-LNP hepatitis C vaccine encoding p7 elicits improved humoral immunogenicity , Vaccine, 88: 2026
Ökten, A, Filler, R, Fang, ZH, McWilliams, B, Muscat-Rivera, J, Kung, JS, Gomes, IM, Mankowski, M, Skelly, A, Williams, A, Eisenbarth, S, Chen, SD, Baldridge, M, Lee, S, Nice, T, Wobus, C, Smith, T, Weissman, D, Krieder, E, Craft, J, Wilen, C IgA is necessary and sufficient to protect against norovirus infection , Journal Of Immunology, 215(_1): 2026
Maule, E, Albertus, A, Shuvaev, V, Muscat-Rivera, J, Kegel, M, Corrigan, A, Muzykantov, V, Kreider, E, Melamed, J, Weissman, D, Betts, M Targeted Immunotherapy for Regulatory T Cells , Journal Of Immunology, 215(_1): 2026