Plant Viral Expression Vectors History and New Developments

Proteins such as antibodies, enzymes, hormones and vaccine antigens can be used to prevent, diagnose and treat a range of diseases. Such molecules are therefore of paramount importance in health and medicine. Historically, many of these proteins have been isolated from human or animal sources. However, the low quantities present in such source material coupled with safety risks and high purification costs have limited the availability of protein therapeutics and vaccines for many types of disease. 

Transgenic animals [5] have been considered as an alternative because they can produce complex human proteins in large amounts. However, potential disadvantages of transgenic animals include economic and time constraints as well as risks that the products could be contaminated with human pathogens. 

In recent years, plants have emerged as a promising new system for the production of recombinant proteins. Plants are widely described as green factories because they provide possible solutions to several of the safety and economic concerns raised by animal systems. The advantages of plants include economical large-scale 

Molecular Farming. Edited by Rainer Fischer, Stefan Schillberg 

Copyright 2004 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH Co. KGaA, Weinheim ISBN 3-527-30786-9 

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Plant Viral Expression Vectors History and New Developments... 

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