Plant cell factories and mucosal vaccines

Development of plant-based mucosal vaccines against widespread infectious diseases.

Mucosal vaccination is a perspective for the control of infectious diseases, since it is capable of inducing humoral and cell-mediated responses. In addition, the delivery of vaccines to mucosal surfaces makes immunization practice safe and acceptable, and eliminates needle-associated risks. Transgenic plants can be used as bioreactors for the production of mucosally delivered protective antige...

Mucosal Immunity and Vaccines

These mucosal surfaces, while located inside the body, are actually a physical barrier between the outside and the sterile interior cavity of the body known as the “systemic” environment. Critical nutrients, oxygen and other molecules are constantly taken up across these mucosal barriers; however, another important function of the mucous is to keep invading pathogens out [15]. Daily these mucou...

Plant Glandular Trichomes: Natural Cell Factories of High Biotechnological Interest.

Multicellular glandular trichomes are epidermal outgrowths characterized by the presence of a head made of cells that have the ability to secrete or store large quantities of specialized metabolites. Our understanding of the transcriptional control of glandular trichome initiation and development is still in its infancy. This review points to some central questions that need to be addressed to ...

Cyanobacteria as Cell Factories to Produce Plant Secondary Metabolites

Cyanobacteria represent a promising platform for the production of plant secondary metabolites. Their capacity to express plant P450 proteins, which have essential functions in the biosynthesis of many plant secondary metabolites, makes cyanobacteria ideal for this purpose, and their photosynthetic capability allows cyanobacteria to grow with simple nutrient inputs. This review summarizes the a...

Mucosal Tolerance a Barrier? Perspectives on Mucosal Vaccines: Is