Biotech Updates

Transgenic Expression and Recovery of Biologically Active Recombinant Human Insulin from Thale Cress Seeds

November 5, 2010

With the increased incidence of diabetes comes the increased demand for affordable insulin in the future. However, limitations in the capacity and economics of production will make it difficult for the existing manufacturing techniques to reach the demand for insulin. Thus, scientists are finding novel ways to produce insulin to meet the future demand. SemBioSys Genetics, Inc. scientist Cory Nykiforuk and colleagues developed a new expression and recovery technique for the economical production of biopharmaceuticals from oilseeds. Through this technology, recombinant human precursor insulin is expressed in genetically-engineered plants. Plant-produced insulin accumulates to significant levels in GE thale cress seed (0.13 percent total seed protein) and can be treated in a controlled environment to form a product which is equally effective as DesB30-insulin, a recombinant human insulin protein product.

Read the research article published by the Plant Biotechnology Journal at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-7652.2005.00159.x/full.