Algae cultures could replace human or animal cells in the production of drugs, for example in oncology, reports Plant Biotechnology Journal.
Grown in huge, sterile tanks (up to 200 liters and costing in hundreds of millions of dollars), living cells produce a variety of proteins that are used to make drugs – such as monoclonal antibodies. The costs of their production are currently high, which translates into the prices of modern drugs, effective, for example, in the treatment of rheumatic and neurological diseases or cancer. It happens that a gram of purified protein costs several thousand dollars.
If plants, especially water-grown algae could be used, therapeutic proteins could be cheaper. Scientists of the team of prof. Stephen Mayfield from the University of California in San Diego checked how Chlamydomonas reinhardti, used in laboratory research, deals with the production of seven types of proteins.
These include interferon beta (used in the treatment of multiple sclerosis), erythropoietin, used in the treatment of anemia, and insulin, necessary in the treatment of type I diabetes, and VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor (helps treat emphysema) and the protein HMGB1, which supports the treatment of cancer.
It turned out that in four out of seven cases, it was enough to insert the appropriate gene into the algae genome to obtain the necessary protein in quantities suitable for commercial use. Proteins had the same activity as obtained in the previous way, i.e. in the cultures of human or animal cells or bacteria.
The number of algae can double every 12 hours. Algae are better at dealing with complex proteins than bacteria. This would reduce the need to use human or animal cells that are difficult to maintain. A simple nutrient solution and sunlight are enough to grow algae. The crude protein produced in this way would cost about a few tens of cents per gram.
The same team of scientists is also working on the use of algae to produce fuel (PAP).