Franken-carrots and The Practice of Pharmaceutical Farming

 In Emily Anthes’ title work, Frankenstein’s Cat:  Cuddling  up to biotech’s brave new beasts, the concept of pharmaceutical farming – or “pharming” as Anthes calls it – is discussed at length. The premise of pharmaceutical farming involves manipulating an organism’s genome so as to reap a viable pharmaceutical product that can directly benefit humans. Anthes uses the case of GTC Biotherapeutics and their use of genetically engineered goats to produce ATryn – an antithrombin or anticoagulant found in human liver cells that prevents blood clots. In this case, a goat embryo is injected with the human gene that codes for antithrombin. Additionally, a promoter is introduced which facilitates the expression of this gene sequence in the mammary glands of the goat. This embryo is then implanted into a female goat, where by, the desired transgenic goat can grow and develop. When the female transgenic goats began to lactate, the promoter associated with the inserted gene sequence was activated – resulting in the production of thrombin in the goat’s milk. Anthes goes on to deascribe how the overall practice of ‘pharming’ animals “…pumps out medicines for ailments ranging from hemophilia to cancer” (Anthes 35)[1]

In addition to Anthes’ example of genetically modified goats being used to create pharmaceuticals, a recent article in Popular Science centers around the FDA clearance of a drug produced from genetically modified carrots. The drug, Elelyso, is a treatment for a disorder called Gaucher Disease – a disease “…which results from the lack of a specific enzyme” resulting in a malfunction in lysosomal storage (Dillow NP)^[2]. In this case of pharmaceutical farming, a plant cell is implanted with the gene that corresponds to the missing enzyme in humans. Patients are then given the drug farmed from these plants and, in clinical trials, have shown similar improvements to those who are given the lab synthesized version of the drug. The process of farming pharmecueticals has the potential to alleviate some of the constraints many face in seeking medical treatment – whether it is a lack of human donors, financial accessibility, etc.

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[1] Anthes, Emily. Frankenstein's Cat: Cuddling up to biotech's brave new beasts. New York: Scientific American/ Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2013. Print.

[2] Dillow, Clay. "The First Drug Made by Genetically Modified Plants is Approved for Human Use by the FDA."www.popularscience.com. N.p., 2 May 2012. Web. 10 Oct. 2013.