There is no proof that spike proteins created in response to mRNA vaccines are harmful to the body, scientists have told Reuters.

The claim was made by immunologist Byram Bridle (here) in an interview on May 28 (here) with Canadian broadcaster Alex Pierson (here and here).

Bridle asked listeners to brace themselves for “scary” findings that he assured were “completely backed up by peer-reviewed scientific publications”. He said: “We made a big mistake… we thought the spike protein was a great target antigen, (but) we never knew the spike protein itself was a toxin and a pathogenic protein.”

He speculated that COVID-19 shots could lead to cardiovascular problems and infertility, because “by vaccinating people we are inadvertently inoculating them with a toxin” (timestamp 8.27).

The claim was repeated online (here , here , here), notably in an article by the Hal Turner radio show (here), a radio programme broadcast by the namesake’s far-right political commentator.

Reuters presented the statement to experts at the Meedan Digital Health Lab (meedan.com/digital-health-lab), who responded: “So far, there is no scientific evidence available that suggests spike proteins created in our bodies from the COVID-19 vaccines are toxic or damaging our organs.” (here)

Research shows that spike proteins (here) remain stuck to the cell surface around the injection site and do not travel to other parts of the body via the bloodstream, they added. The 1% of the vaccine that does reach the bloodstream is destroyed by liver enzymes.

Bridle said his findings were corroborated by “cutting-edge science” from Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) (www.pmda.go.jp/0017.html), which he allegedly obtained through a freedom of information request (timestamp 4.41).

Turner’s website repeated the claim and linked this Japanese document as Bridle’s source (here). The article provided no further context, but research conducted by Reuters showed that the chapter was taken from this document (here), which featured the words ‘PFIZER CONFIDENTIAL’ in the footer.

When Reuters presented the document to Pfizer, however, a spokesperson wrote in an email that the file is a Common Technical Document (CTD) unrelated to Bridle’s claim.

Pharmaceutical companies are required to submit CTDs to regulatory authorities in the European Economic Area, Japan and the United States before medicines or vaccines can be approved (here). Pfizer submitted this CTD to be assessed by the PMDA before the shot was certified in February 2021 (here).

“We can confirm the document does not make any reference to spike proteins from the vaccine resulting in dangerous toxins that linger in the body – this claim is incorrect”, the spokesperson said….