Plant-based vaccines for potential human application: a review

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Immunology
• Plant Sciences

Background:

• Growing demand for safe, affordable vaccines drives innovation beyond traditional methods.
• Biotechnology advancements enable novel vaccine production systems.
• Transgenic plants offer a versatile platform for antigen expression and delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the potential of transgenic plants as a system for producing edible vaccines.
• To describe the mechanism of edible vaccines in stimulating mucosal immunity.
• To discuss the future prospects and challenges of plant-based vaccine technology.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing transgenic plants for foreign antigen expression and accumulation in edible tissues.
• Investigating the hypothesis that oral consumption of these plants elicits a mucosal immune response.
• Analyzing the potential for protection against specific pathogens.

Main Results:

• Transgenic plants can successfully express and accumulate foreign antigens in edible parts.
• The concept of edible vaccines relies on eliciting a mucosal immune response upon ingestion.
• The efficacy and feasibility of this approach are still under active investigation.

Conclusions:

• Plant-based edible vaccines represent an innovative and potentially cost-effective vaccine strategy.
• This technology holds promise for delivering antigens to mucosal immune targets.
• Further research is necessary to fully understand and overcome the challenges associated with edible vaccine development.