Pharmaceuticals derived fom plants

Pharmaceuticals derived from plants

History of Plant-based Pharmaceuticals

According to Roger Beachy , President of Donald Danforth Plant Science Center , Plants are the most efficient producers of proteins on earth (Biotechnology Industry Organization , 2006 ' In pharmacy , proteins can be engineered to be utilized as therapeutic agents to match specific illnesses . Applying these thoughts to biotechnology , plant-based pharmaceuticals are now being considered in the treatment of illnesses The idea is to engineer plants to become producers of therapeutic proteins that could then be extracted , refined and used in the production of pharmaceuticals p

In general , the possibility of use of biologics , including both plants and animals , to produce pharmaceuticals has been explored prior to the new millennium . Starting 2002 , animal-based pharmaceuticals already represent about 7 of the pharmaceutical market . In 2006 , the expected growth of the market is to 12 , with the 700 new biologics being tested in 2005 , 200 of which , in its late-stage trials (McCook , 2005 . The growth is expected to rise even more with researchers on plant-based pharmaceuticals , now in various stages of clinical trials of plant-based pharmaceutical production . According to Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO (2006 , the commercialization of the first plant-based pharmaceutical is expected in at least three to five years from now

Manufacture

Biotechnological breakthroughs have made possible the genetic enhancements in plants for the production of specific proteins which are very significant in the production of different varieties of pharmaceuticals . Among these specific proteins are monoclonal antibodies , enzymes and blood proteins (Biotechnology Industry Association , 2006 , thus , categorizing plant-based pharmaceuticals as the therapeutic agents or pharmaceutical proteins produced in live plants and not referring to the plants per se

With this said , the production of pharmaceutical proteins in plants entails genetic modification starting from gene sequencing to gene construction of the specific plants used . This is done to transform the plants into independent producers of necessary proteins needed in the production of the specific pharmaceuticals . The plants that are used are then grown in confinement under a highly regulated environment . The production is regulated by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS ) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA ) to ensure that the manufacturing processes meet the standards on quality and safety (Biotechnology Industry Association 2006

The plants undergo a series of steps for the extraction , separation purification and processing of the pharmaceutical proteins after harvest . These proteins are then used as pharmaceutical ingredients in drugs (Biotechnology Industry Association , 2006

The conditions they treat

As of 2005 , plant-based pharmaceuticals are not widely available commercially (McCook , 2005 . Drugs claiming to be plant-based today are mostly just modifications or copies of the natural substances from plants . Examples of plant-derived substances that are used to treat ailments today are Cynarin and Silymarin . Cynarin is derived from artichokes to treat hypertension , while Silymarin is derived from milk thistle to treat liver problems . But systems using plant-based products have already started . Plants such as potatoes , corn , tobacco , rice alfalfa , barley , safflower , soy and duckweed have already received...