Queensland University of Technology researcher using plants to battle COVID-19

In Australia, a top researcher from the Queensland University of Technology has developed a roadmap for biologists and biotechnologists who are turning to the new technique of producing antibodies, vaccines and therapeutics, including those for COVID-19, in plants.

He said aid an international biotech company had already been given fast-tracked access to the entire chromosome-level genome sequence of the Australian-native plant Nicotiana benthamiana.

One major problem, once protein-based diagnostic products and vaccines are developed, is their production in bulk and at a low cost.

One solution is to use plants as biofactories for the production. Plants can be grown in large amounts using simple agricultural technologies, that are within reach of developing countries that lack sophisticated protein production methods, such as those using animal cell cultures. This discipline is known as “molecular farming.”