US use genetically modified yeast to make painkillers
March 15, 2016 Source: Technology Daily
Window._bd_share_config={ "common":{ "bdSnsKey":{ },"bdText":"","bdMini":"2","bdMiniList":false,"bdPic":"","bdStyle":" 0","bdSize":"16"},"share":{ }};with(document)0[(getElementsByTagName('head')[0]||body).appendChild(createElement('script')) .src='http://bdimg.share.baidu.com/static/api/js/share.js?v=89860593.js?cdnversion='+~(-new Date()/36e5)];Yeast can be used not only for steamed steamed buns but also for making painkillers. A study published in Science recently introduced a method for producing morphine analgesics using transgenic yeast. Researchers say the law will not only reduce the drug production cycle from one year to a few days, but also reduce the cost to one-tenth of the traditional method. After the technology matures, it is expected to significantly reduce the retail price of related drugs.
The production of painkillers often takes a long process: first, the licensed farmers grow poppy, and when the poppy is mature, they are sent to the pharmaceutical company to extract the opioid drug molecules and other ingredients to make the drug. This process often takes about a year. Because plants are susceptible to weather, pests and other factors, traditional production methods often have many uncontrollable factors.
Christine Smock, a bioengineer at Stanford University in the United States, and her team believe that genetically engineered yeast may replace this process. In the new study, they reprogrammed the genetic mechanisms of baker's yeast, allowing yeast cells to convert sugar into a close relative of morphine, hydrocodone. This substance has a variety of activities similar to those of codeine (also known as methylmorphine) and can be used for analgesic and analgesic. In addition, this method can also be used to manufacture drugs for the treatment of cancer, infectious diseases, high blood pressure and arthritis. The new method also gives manufacturers greater flexibility in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals from different compounds.
Researchers believe that as research deepens, the cost of producing painkillers with this genetically modified yeast can be reduced to one-tenth of the traditional method.
This will be a very important thing, because the people who take these drugs account for a large proportion of the global population. According to WHO estimates, more than 5 billion people worldwide have no or little access to the painkillers they need. Researchers hope that the new method will significantly reduce the price of these drugs, allowing more patients to get the drugs they need at a lower price.
However, Smock also admitted that the new technology is not perfect for the time being: currently producing a dose of painkiller costs 20,000 liters of engineering yeast. Next, researchers need to increase the efficiency of enzyme utilization by each cell, optimize the amount of drug produced by yeast, and improve the efficiency of engineered yeast. Smock believes that a well-funded company is expected to solve these problems within five to six years.
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