Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 13, 2026
11:09
Revealing the Cytoskeletal Organization of Invasive Cancer Cells in 3D
Published on: October 26, 2013
Shining light on collagen: expressing collagen in plants
Barbara Brodsky1, David L Kaplan
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, MA 02155, USA.
Tissue Engineering. Part A
|March 26, 2013
Summary
Plant-derived collagens offer a safe and sustainable alternative to animal sources for biomaterials. Research shows progress in producing and assembling these recombinant proteins for medical applications.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Protein Engineering
- Plant Biotechnology
Background:
- Collagens are vital physiological proteins with complex processing challenges for ex vivo applications.
- Current collagen sources, primarily bovine, pose safety risks and limited availability.
- Existing animal and heterologous host collagens face economic and structural limitations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore plant-derived collagens as a safe and sustainable alternative to traditional sources.
- To address the unmet need for pure, safe, and economically viable collagen biomaterials.
- To investigate the potential of recombinant plant-produced collagens in regenerative medicine.
Main Methods:
- Focus on plant-based systems for collagen production.
- Investigating the self-assembly of recombinant plant-derived collagens into higher-order structures.
- Evaluating the utility of these plant-derived collagen materials in medical applications.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated progress in the plant production of collagens.
- Showcased the ability of these recombinant proteins to self-assemble into functional structures.
- Highlighted the potential medical applications of plant-derived collagen biomaterials.
Conclusions:
- Plant-derived collagens represent a promising solution to current supply and safety concerns.
- Recombinant protein production in plants offers a scalable and safe method for generating collagen.
- This approach holds significant potential for advancing biomaterials and regenerative medicine.
More Related Videos
07:03Imaging Denatured Collagen Strands In vivo and Ex vivo via Photo-triggered Hybridization of Caged Collagen Mimetic Peptides
Published on: January 31, 2014
06:07Preparing Porcine Eyes for Confocal Reflectance Microscopy to Visualize the Vitreous Collagen Fiber Network
Published on: October 17, 2025
Related Concept Videos
01:13Collagens are the Major Structural Proteins of ECM
Three main types of fibers are secreted by fibroblasts: collagen fibers, elastic fibers, and reticular fibers. Collagen fiber is made from fibrous protein subunits linked together to form a long, straight fiber. Collagen fibers, while flexible, have great tensile strength, resist stretching, and give ligaments and tendons their characteristic resilience and strength. These fibers hold connective tissues together, even during the body's movement.
Connective tissue proper includes loose...
Connective tissue proper includes loose...
01:11Fibril-associated Collagen
Fibril-associated collagens are a type of collagens present in the extracellular matrix with interrupted triple helices or FACIT (Fibril-associated collagens interrupted triple-helices). FACIT help connect and attach the collagen fibrils with each other as well as with other proteins of the extracellular matrix.
For example, the type II collagen fibrils in cartilage have covalently bound type IX fibril-associated collagens at regular intervals. Other types of fibril-associated collagens are...
For example, the type II collagen fibrils in cartilage have covalently bound type IX fibril-associated collagens at regular intervals. Other types of fibril-associated collagens are...
01:18Plant Tissues
Plants are multicellular eukaryotes with tissue systems made of various cell types that carry out specific functions. Different tissues work together to perform a unique function and form an organ. Organs working together form organ systems. Vascular plants have two distinct organ systems: a shoot system and a root system. The shoot system consists of two portions: the vegetative (non-reproductive) parts of the plant, such as the leaves and the stems, and the reproductive parts of the plant,...
02:50Transgenic Plants
Recombinant DNA technology called transgenesis is often used to add a foreign gene or remove a detrimental gene from an organism. Such genetically modified organisms are called transgenic organisms.
The first-ever transgenic plant was a tobacco plant developed in 1983 that showed resistance against the tobacco mosaic virus. Since then, many transgenic plants have been developed and commercialized for improving the agricultural, ornamental, and horticultural value of a crop plant. Transgenic...
The first-ever transgenic plant was a tobacco plant developed in 1983 that showed resistance against the tobacco mosaic virus. Since then, many transgenic plants have been developed and commercialized for improving the agricultural, ornamental, and horticultural value of a crop plant. Transgenic...
01:05Type IV Collagen of Basal Lamina
Type IV collagen is a 400 nm long, network-forming collagen that acts as a barrier between the epithelial and endothelial cells. Type IV collagen forms the backbone of the basement membrane by scaffolding with laminin, entactin, proteoglycans, and fibronectin. Apart from rendering structural support to the basement membrane, it also helps entail signaling potentials necessary for both pathological and physiological functions.
A type IV collagen molecule has six alpha chains which can exist in...
A type IV collagen molecule has six alpha chains which can exist in...
02:00Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light
Light plays a significant role in regulating the growth and development of plants. In addition to providing energy for photosynthesis, light provides other important cues to regulate a range of developmental and physiological responses in plants.