New research by London-based scientists shows tobacco plants can have positive health benefits for humans.
Western University and Lawson Health Research Institute researchers are using the plants as "green bioreactors" to produce the anti-inflammatory protein Interleukin 37 (IL-37).
"This protein is a master regulator of inflammation in the body, and has been shown in pre-clinical models to be effective in treating a whole host of diseases,” said Dr. Tony Jevnikar, a Western professor and Lawson scientist. “The human kidney produces IL-37, but not nearly enough to get us out of an inflammation injury.”
Among the possible inflammatory and autoimmune disorders the protein could potentially treat are Type 2 diabetes, stroke, dementia, and arthritis.
Other methods used to produce the protein for clinical use come at a high cost for limited quantities.
"The plants offer the potential to produce pharmaceuticals in a way that is much more affordable than current methods,” Western biology professor and Lawson scientist Shengwu Ma said. “Tobacco is high-yield, and we can temporarily transform the plant so that we can begin making the protein of interest within two weeks.”
Having proved they can produce the protein in tobacco, researchers hope to do the same with other plants, including potatoes. Jevnikar is also studying to see whether the protein can prevent organ inflammation during transplantation.
“I hope that this work will impact a change in how people view plants and hopefully this approach will be a way to provide treatments to patients that are effective and affordable,” added Jevnikar.
The tobacco plant study was recently published in the journal Plant Cell Reports.
