CHAPTER 9: Therapeutic Protein Production from Genetically Modified Foods

Advances in the field of biotechnology have resulted in the emergence of genetic engineering methods whereby the genetic material of an organism can be manipulated or redesigned to yield desired products. Recently, there has been an increasing trend to elevate the existence of specific nutrients in edible genetically modified (GM) crops to be utilized as therapeutic agents. In this case, GM crops serve as a cell factory to generate such nutrients or necessary biomolecules and can be delivered to patients as a novel oral delivery approach for drugs and vaccines. On the other hand, GM foods are fraught with significant challenges with regard to human and animal health and disruption of the ecosystem. This chapter aims to provide an overview of GM foods, methods to produce therapeutic proteins in GM foods and various types of therapeutic proteins produced via GM crops or foods. The limitations, potential allergenicity and future of GM foods are also discussed.