Production of antibodies in plants and their use for global health

Recombinant antibodies can be used to diagnose, treat and prevent disease by exploiting their specific antigen-binding activities. A large number of drugs currently in development are recombinant antibodies and most of these are produced in cultured rodent cells. Although such cells produce authentic functional products, they are expensive, difficult to scale-up and may contain human pathogens. Plants represent a cost-effective, convenient and safe alternative production system and are slowly gaining acceptance. Five plant-derived therapeutic recombinant antibodies (plantibodies) are undergoing clinical evaluation, three of which can be used as prophylactics. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.