Recent advances in molecular farming using monocot plants

Abstract

Heterologous synthesis of proteins or peptides in plant-based systems, referred to as plant molecular farming, is a practical and safe approach for the large-scale and cost-effective production of therapeutic biomolecules. In this context, monocotyledonous plants, and especially cereals, have been considered attractive vehicles for producing high-value recombinant proteins. The endosperm, as the largest grain storage compartment, offers an appropriate environment for long-lasting protein accumulation. During the last decades, fascinating progress has been achieved in the gene transfer technology and genetic manipulation of the monocot crops using either Agrobacterium tumefaciens or direct gene transfer by biolistic methods. Our group has recently expressed biologically active recombinant human peptide cathelicidin in barley grains using endosperm-specific promoter and brought such engineered lines to field cultivation under current EU regulations for genetically modified organisms. This article reviews the most recent advances and strategies for the production of biopharmaceutical proteins in transgenic monocots, highlighting various aspects involved in recombinant protein accumulation in grains, and discussing current bottlenecks and perspectives for the biosynthesis of therapeutic molecules using different monocot plant platforms.

Keywords: Agrobacterium-mediated transformation; Cereals; Endosperm-specific promoters; Molecular farming; Post-translational modifications.