Biopharmaceuticals in Plants: Toward the Next Century of Medicine »

Kathleen Laura Hefferon achieved her Ph.D. at the University of Toronto. She most recently held the title of Director of Operations of the Human Metabolic Research Unit in the Division of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University. She also acts as a science writer for the Center for Hepatitis C Research at Rockefeller University in New York City and as an expert selector for the Infection and Immunity Division of the Medical Research Council, in London.

Transgenic plants present enormous potential to become one of the most cost-effective and safe systems for large-scale production of proteins for industrial, pharmaceutical, veterinary, and agricultural uses. Over the past decade, much progress has been made with respect to the development of vaccines, antibodies, and other therapeutic proteins. Biopharmaceuticals in Plants: Toward the Next Century of Medicine provides a comprehensive survey of all major aspects of the development and production of plant-made biopharmaceuticals.

Accompanied by an exhaustive list of references to facilitate further study, this critical volume:

• Describes the theory and practice of modern plant transformation techniques with respect to nuclear and plastic genomes


• Outlines the steps involved in the generation of transgenic plants


• Discusses the engineering of plant virus expression vectors for transient expression of vaccine proteins and other therapeutics in plant tissue


• Addresses the significant role of glycosylation in the production of plant-made mammalian proteins


• Investigates the basis of mucosal immunity using plant-based oral vaccines


• Examines the scale-up of plant-derived vaccine and therapeutic proteins in entire crops or in large batch cell suspension cultures


• Explores the development of clinical trials utilizing plant-derived biopharmaceutical proteins


• Evaluates risks and biosafety concerns regarding plant-derived pharmaceuticals

The book concludes with a discussion of the future of plant-based vaccines and other therapeutic proteins with respect to commercial viability and as a tool to improve global public health. Far-reaching in its scope, this text is a baseline reference that students and researchers in a broad range of fields such as medicine, plant science, biotechnology, crop science, natural products chemistry, and engineering will consult regularly. It will also serve as a useful tool for individuals and companies seeking to invest in this dynamic area.