A claim suggesting that COVID-19 vaccines contain 99 percent graphene oxide, a poisonous substance, is found to be untrue. The viral claim is based on an analysis by a professor in Spain which has been rejected by the experts.
Anti-vaxxers around the world have come up with COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theories. The main charge against the vaccine is that they are capable of altering the human DNA.
What is Graphene Oxide?
Graphene oxide is a "single-atomic layered material" made through the oxidation of graphite. When chemically reduced, graphene oxide can create graphene which has been described as "the strongest, thinnest and most conductive material on earth."
Reuters stated that in his report published in June, 2021, Pablo Campra Madrid, a professor of the University of Almería (UAL), said that he analyzed samples out of a Pfizer-BioNTech vial of "unknown origin", sent to him through a 'messenger service'.
He further claimed that during a comparison of images of this vaccine liquid under the microscopes with images of graphene oxide published in scientific journals they looked similar.
Stating that the investigation was requested by Ricardo Delgado Martín, founder of the blog "La Quinta Columna", Campra Madrid clarified that the "microscope doesn't provide conclusive evidence" and that the analysis comes from "a single, limited sample" – one of unknown origin and traceability.
Here is the Truth
Following the publication of the report, the University of Almeria distanced itself from the controversial study. In a tweet, while describing the publication an "unofficial report by a university professor about an analysis of a sample of unknown origin with a total lack of traceability", it stated, "it was a "report that this university neither subscribes to nor shares, as the report itself warns."
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's website the ingredients of the Pfizer vaccine include: mRNA, lipids, potassium chloride, monobasic potassium phosphate, sodium chloride, dibasic sodium phosphate dihydrate, and sucrose. The list does not mention graphene oxide.
Further, in a communique to the outlet, Pfizer's Senior Associate of Global Media Relations also clarified that graphene oxide is not used in the manufacture of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
