Researchers lay groundwork for large-scale production of therapeutic proteins in eggs
Antonio Ovejero Diaz/Dreamstime.com
Hen eggs: transgenic chickens could yield therapeutic proteins in
egg whites |
Hens may in the future be used for large-scale production of therapeutic proteins, new research published this week online suggests (PNAS Early
Edition, www.pnas.org).
UK researchers created transgenic chickens by inserting certain gene
sequences into embryos using lentiviral vectors derived from equine infectious
anaemia virus. They demonstrated stable transmission of the integrated
vectors through the germ line in two subsequent generations. The resulting “transgenes” were
chosen to express either a humanised miniantibody (miR24 — a potential
treatment for malignant myeloma) or human interferon beta-1a, directed
by regulatory sequences from the chicken ovalbumin gene.
“We aimed to direct transgene expression to the oviduct of laying
hens by utilising regulatory sequences of the ovalbumin gene to control
expression
of the two therapeutic proteins,” the authors explain.
Ovalbumin makes up some 54 per cent of protein within egg white; the
researchers demonstrated that the transgenic hens laid eggs that contained
functional recombinant therapeutic proteins. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal
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