GM Chicory Brings Hope to African Malaria Patients
May 11, 2007| |
Approximately, 40% of the world’s population, mostly living in the world’s poorest countries, is at risk of malaria. Every year, more than 500 million people become severely ill with malaria. Most cases and deaths are in sub-Saharan Africa. Artemisinin is a basic raw material used in ACTs (Artemisinin-based Combination Therapies).
The compound is isolated from the shrub Artemisia annua, long used in traditional Chinese medicine. However, artemisinin is an expensive plant extract, so for the drug to benefit patients in poorer countries the price of production must drop sharply.
Dafra Pharma, a Belgian pharmaceutical company, has commissioned Plant Research International (PRI) to begin new research into optimizing the production method of artemisinin via genetically modified chicory plants. The aim of the research is to realize inexpensive, large-scale production of artemisinin under controllable conditions.
Read more at: http://sev.prnewswire.com/biotechnology/20070508/3406093en-1.html
| |
Biotech Updates is a weekly newsletter of ISAAA, a not-for-profit organization. It is distributed for free to over 22,000 subscribers worldwide to inform them about the key developments in biosciences, especially in biotechnology. Your support will help us in our mission to feed the world with knowledge. You can help by donating as little as $10.
-
See more articles:
-
News from Around the World
- Acceptance of GM Food: an Experiment in Six Countries
- Compliance Costs for Regulatory Approval of New Biotech Crops
- UN Report on Bioenergy Cautions on Biofuels Adoption
- Organic Agriculture and Food Security
- GM Patent Rejected after 13 Years for Lack of “Novelty”
- Genetic Diversity Will Help Solve Future Global Challenges
- GM Chicory Brings Hope to African Malaria Patients
- ARS, on Lettuce and Fruit Flies
- Gourmet Chocolates to Boost Farmers’ Incomes and Preserve Biodiversity
- Roundup Ready Alfalfa still Banned
- Spartan Corn for Cars
- India: Supreme Court Lifts Temporary Ban on Field Trials on GM Crops
- Hybrid Pigeonpea Produces “Quantum Leap in Yield”
- New Knowledge Leads to Improved Rice Quality
- Indonesia Develops New Rice Varieties to Fight Bacterial Blight
- Vietnam Sets to Develop GM crops
- Workshop on Low Cost Gene Technologies Held in India
- Grains Become Better and Healthier
- Study Examines Potential Impact of GM Canola on Organic Sectors in Australia
- Australians Need to Embrace GM Foods
- CIRAD and INRA Launch the French International Agricultural Initiative (IFRAI)
- SIROCCO – Silencing Genes for Health and Agriculture
- Farmers in UK, Germany Willing to Grow GM Crops
- UK Government Advised to Look at Brighter Side of GM Crops
- Identification of Transgenic Tomatoes Using Non-Destructive Techniques
- Mannitol Expressing Eggplants More Resistant to Fungal Wilts
- Sulfate Phytoremediation through Transgenic Water Spinach
-
Announcements
- Molecular Markers Techniques and Fingerprinting Course
- APSA Training Course In Hybrid Rice Production In China
-
Resources
- New by CIRAD: All You Need to Know About Cotton
- French and Portuguese Versions of Seed Aid for Feed Security: Practice Briefs
- NAL Publishes Spanish Version of Agricultural Thesaurus and Dictionary
-
Read the latest: - Biotech Updates (January 8, 2025)
- Gene Editing Supplement (December 11, 2024)
- Gene Drive Supplement (February 22, 2023)
-
Subscribe to BU: - Share
- Tweet