Making an ally from an enemy: plant virology and the new agriculture

Glutathione-the "master" antioxidant in the regulation of resistant and susceptible host-plant virus-interaction

The interaction between plant hosts and plant viruses is a very unique and complex process, relying on dynamically modulated intercellular redox states and the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Plants strive to precisely control this state during biotic stress, as optimal redox levels enable proper induction of defense mechanisms against plant viruses. One of the crucial elements of ROS regulation and redox state is the production of metabolites, such as glutathione, or the activation of glutathione-associated enzymes. Both of these elements play a role in limiting the degree of potential oxidative damage in plant cells. While the role of glutathione and specific enzymes is well understood in other types of abiotic and biotic stresses, particularly those associated with bacteria or fungi, recent advances in research have highlighted the significance of glutathione modulation and mutations in genes encoding glutathione-associated enzymes in triggering immunity or susceptibility against plant viruses. Apparently, glutathione-associated genes are involved in precisely controlling and protecting host cells from damage caused by ROS during viral infections, playing a crucial role in the host's response. In this review, we aim to outline the significant improvements made in research on plant viruses and glutathione, specifically in the context of their involvement in susceptible and resistant responses, as well as changes in the localization of glutathione. Analyses of essential glutathione-associated enzymes in susceptible and resistant responses have demonstrated that the levels of enzymatic activity or the absence of specific enzymes can impact the spread of the virus and activate host-induced defense mechanisms. This contributes to the complex network of the plant immune system. Although investigations of glutathione during the plant-virus interplay remain a challenge, the use of novel tools and approaches to explore its role will significantly contribute to our knowledge in the field.

Plant Expression of Trans-Encapsidated Chimeric Viral Vaccines with Animal RNA Replicons: An Update

In this protocol, we outline how to produce a chimeric viral vaccine in a biosafety level 1 (BSL1) environment. An animal viral vector RNA encapsidated with tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) coat protein can be fully assembled in planta. Agrobacterium cultures containing each component are inoculated together into tobacco leaves and the self-assembled hybrid chimeric viral vaccine is harvested 4 days later and purified with a simple PEG precipitation. The viral RNA delivery vector is derived from the BSL1 insect virus, Flock House virus (FHV), and replicates in human and animal cells but does not spread systemically. A polyethylene glycol purification protocol is also provided to collect and purify these vaccines for immunological tests. In this update, we also provide a protocol for in trans co-inoculation of a modified FHV protein A, which significantly increased the yield of in planta chimeric viral vaccine.

Delivery of progeny virus from the infectious clone of cucumber green mottle mosaic virus and quantification of the viral load in different host plants

Cucumber green mottle mosaic virus (CGMMV, genus Tobamovirus) is a widely occurring tobamovirus in cucurbits. The genome of CGMMV has been used previously for the expression of foreign genes in the plant. High throughput delivery and high viral titer are important requirements of foreign protein expression in plant through virus genome-based vector, in this study, Agrobacterium containing infectious construct of CGMMV was infiltrated through syringe, vacuum and high-speed spray to N. benthamiana, cucumber and bottle gourd leaves. The success rate of systemic infection of CGMMV agro-construct through all three methods was higher (80-100%) in N. benthamiana compared to the cucurbits (40-73.3%). To determine the high-throughput delivery of CGMMV in the plant system, four delivery methods viz. rubbing, syringe infiltration, vacuum infiltration and high-speed spray using the progeny virus derived through CGMMV agro-construct were compared in the three different plant species. Based on the rate of systemic infection and time required to perform delivery by different methods, vacuum infiltration was found most efficient for the high-throughput delivery of CGMMV. The quantification of CGMMV through qPCR revealed that CGMMV load varied considerably in leaf and fruit tissues depending with the time of infection. Immediately after expression of symptoms, a high load of CGMMV (~ 1 µg/100 mg of tissues) was noticed in young leaves of N. benthamiana and cucumber. In bottle gourd leaves, the CGMMV load was far low compared to N. benthamiana and cucumber plants. In the fruit tissues of cucumber and bottle gourd higher virus load was observed in mature fruit but not in immature fruit. The findings of the present study will serve as an important base line information to produce foreign protein through CGMMV genome-vector.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-023-03630-y.

CoV-RBD121-NP Vaccine Candidate Protects against Symptomatic Disease following SARS-CoV-2 Challenge in K18-hACE2 Mice and Induces Protective Responses That Prevent COVID-19-Associated Immunopathology

We developed a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate (CoV-RBD121-NP) comprised of a tobacco mosaic virus-like nanoparticle conjugated to the receptor-binding domain of the spike glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2 fused to a human IgG1 Fc domain. CoV-RBD121-NP elicits strong antibody responses in C57BL/6 mice and is stable for up to 12 months at 2-8 or 22-28 °C. Here, we showed that this vaccine induces a strong neutralizing antibody response in K18-hACE2 mice. Furthermore, we demonstrated that immunization protects mice from virus-associated mortality and symptomatic disease. Our data indicated that a sufficient pre-existing pool of neutralizing antibodies is required to restrict SARS-CoV-2 replication upon exposure and prevent induction of inflammatory mediators associated with severe disease. Finally, we identified a potential role for CXCL5 as a protective cytokine in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our results suggested that disruption of the CXCL5 and CXCL1/2 axis may be important early components of the inflammatory dysregulation that is characteristic of severe cases of COVID-19.

Transient expression of recombinant proteins in plants using potato virus X based vectors

Plants become a promising biofactory for the large-scale production of recombinant proteins due to low cost, scalability, and safety. Agroinfiltration of plant leaves with a plant viral vector carrying a gene of interest is a rapid and efficient method for protein production in plants. Currently this method is in use for producing a wide range of proteins for multiple applications, including vaccine antigens, antibodies, and protein nanoparticles such as virus-like particles. A number of pharmaceutical proteins produced by transient expression are currently in clinical development. Here, we describe potato virus X based vector pEff-GFP enabling fast and high-level expression of recombinant proteins in Nicotiana benthamiana plants. The pEff vector provides green fluorescent protein expression levels of up to 30% of total soluble protein (about 1mg per g of fresh leaf tissue) and was successfully applied for the production of the immunogens of potential clinical interest.

Simultaneous gene expression and multi-gene silencing in Zea mays using maize dwarf mosaic virus

BACKGROUND

Maize dwarf mosaic virus (MDMV), a member of the genus Potyvirus, infects maize and is non-persistently transmitted by aphids. Several plant viruses have been developed as tools for gene expression and gene silencing in plants. The capacity of MDMV for both gene expression and gene silencing were examined.

RESULTS

Infectious clones of an Ohio isolate of MDMV, MDMV OH5, were obtained, and engineered for gene expression only, and for simultaneous marker gene expression and virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) of three endogenous maize target genes. Single gene expression in single insertion constructs and simultaneous expression of green fluorescent protein (GFP) and silencing of three maize genes in a double insertion construct was demonstrated. Constructs with GFP inserted in the N-terminus of HCPro were more stable than those with insertion at the N-terminus of CP in our study. Unexpectedly, the construct with two insertion sites also retained insertions at a higher rate than single-insertion constructs. Engineered MDMV expression and VIGS constructs were transmissible by aphids (Rhopalosiphum padi).

CONCLUSIONS

These results demonstrate that MDMV-based vector can be used as a tool for simultaneous gene expression and multi-gene silencing in maize.

Process Simulation and Techno-Economic Analysis of Large-Scale Bioproduction of Sweet Protein Thaumatin II

There are currently worldwide efforts to reduce sugar intake due to the various adverse health effects linked with the overconsumption of sugars. Artificial sweeteners have been used as an alternative to nutritive sugars in numerous applications; however, their long-term effects on human health remain controversial. This led to a shift in consumer preference towards non-caloric sweeteners from natural sources. Thaumatins are a class of intensely sweet proteins found in arils of the fruits of the West-African plant Thaumatococcus daniellii. Thaumatins' current production method through aqueous extraction from this plant and uncertainty of the harvest from tropical rainforests limits its supply while the demand is increasing. Despite successful recombinant expression of the protein in several organisms, no large-scale bioproduction facilities exist. We present preliminary process design, process simulation, and economic analysis for a large-scale (50 metric tons/year) production of a thaumatin II variant using several different molecular farming platforms.

RNA silencing suppressor-influenced performance of a virus vector delivering both guide RNA and Cas9 for CRISPR gene editing

We report on further development of the agroinfiltratable Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV)-based overexpression (TRBO) vector to deliver CRISPR/Cas9 components into plants. First, production of a Cas9 (HcoCas9) protein from a binary plasmid increased when co-expressed in presence of suppressors of gene silencing, such as the TMV 126-kDa replicase or the Tomato bushy stunt virus P19 protein. Such suppressor-generated elevated levels of Cas9 expression translated to efficient gene editing mediated by TRBO-G-3'gGFP expressing GFP and also a single guide RNA targeting the mgfp5 gene in the Nicotiana benthamiana GFP-expressing line 16c. Furthermore, HcoCas9 encoding RNA, a large cargo insert of 4.2 kb, was expressed from TRBO-HcoCas9 to yield Cas9 protein again at higher levels upon co-expression with P19. Likewise, co-delivery of TRBO-HcoCas9 and TRBO-G-3'gGFP in the presence of P19 also resulted in elevated levels percentages of indels (insertions and deletions). These data also revealed an age-related phenomenon in plants whereby the RNA suppressor P19 had more of an effect in older plants. Lastly, we used a single TRBO vector to express both Cas9 and a sgRNA. Taken together, we suggest that viral RNA suppressors could be used for further optimization of single viral vector delivery of CRISPR gene editing parts.

Molecular pharming to support human life on the moon, mars, and beyond

Space missions have always assumed that the risk of spacecraft malfunction far outweighs the risk of human system failure. This assumption breaks down for longer duration exploration missions and exposes vulnerabilities in space medical systems. Space agencies can no longer reduce the majority of the human health and performance risks through crew members selection process and emergency re-supply or evacuation. No mature medical solutions exist to address this risk. With recent advances in biotechnology, there is promise for lessening this risk by augmenting a space pharmacy with a biologically-based space foundry for the on-demand manufacturing of high-value medical products. Here we review the challenges and opportunities of molecular pharming, the production of pharmaceuticals in plants, as the basis of a space medical foundry to close the risk gap in current space medical systems. Plants have long been considered to be an important life support object in space and can now also be viewed as programmable factories in space. Advances in molecular pharming-based space foundries will have widespread applications in promoting simple and accessible pharmaceutical manufacturing on Earth.

Transient reprogramming of crop plants for agronomic performance

The development of a new crop variety is a time-consuming and costly process due to the reliance of plant breeding on gene shuffling to introduce desired genes into elite germplasm, followed by backcrossing. Here, we propose alternative technology that transiently targets various regulatory circuits within a plant, leading to operator-specified alterations of agronomic traits, such as time of flowering, vernalization requirement, plant height or drought tolerance. We redesigned techniques of gene delivery, amplification and expression around RNA viral transfection methods that can be implemented on an industrial scale and with many crop plants. The process does not involve genetic modification of the plant genome and is thus limited to a single plant generation, is broadly applicable, fast, tunable and versatile, and can be used throughout much of the crop cultivation cycle. The RNA-based reprogramming may be especially useful in plant pathogen pandemics but also for commercial seed production and for rapid adaptation of orphan crops.

The impact of size on particle drainage dynamics and antibody response

Vaccine-induced immune response can be greatly enhanced by mimicking pathogen properties. The size and the repetitive geometric shape of virus-like particles (VLPs) influence their immunogenicity by facilitating drainage to secondary lymphoid organs and enhancing interaction with and activation of B cells and innate humoral immune components. VLPs derived from the plant Bromovirus genus, specifically cowpea chlorotic mottle virus (CCMV), are T = 3 icosahedral particles. (T) is the triangulation number that refers to the number and arrangements of the subunits (pentamers and hexamers) of the VLPs. CCMV-VLPs can be easily expressed in an E. coli host system and package ssRNA during the expression process. Recently, we have engineered CCMV-VLPs by incorporating the universal tetanus toxin (TT) epitope at the N-terminus. The modified CCMV_TT-VLPs successfully form icosahedral particles T = 3, with a diameter of ~30 nm analogous to the parental VLPs. Interestingly, incorporating TT epitope at the C-terminus of CCMV_TT-VLPs results in the formation of Rod-shaped VLPs, ~1 μm in length and ~ 30 nm in width. In this study, we have investigated the draining kinetics and immunogenicity of both engineered forms (termed as Round-shaped CCMV_TT-VLPs and Rod-shaped CCMV_TT-VLPs) as potential B cell immunogens using different in vitro and in vivo assays. Our results reveal that Round-shaped CCMV_TT-VLPs are more efficient in draining to secondary lymphoid organs to charge professional antigen-presenting cells as well as B cells. Furthermore, compared to Rod-shaped CCMV_TT-VLPs, Round-shaped CCMV_TT-VLPs led to more than 100-fold increased systemic IgG and IgA responses accompanied by prominent formation of splenic germinal centers. Round-shaped CCMV_TT-VLPs could also polarize the induced T cell response toward Th1. To our knowledge, this is the first study investigating and comparing the draining kinetics and immunogenicity of one and the same VLP monomer forming nano-sized icosahedra or rods in the micrometer size.

Development and optimization of a pepino mosaic virus-based vector for rapid expression of heterologous proteins in plants

Plant-virus-derived vectors are versatile tools with multiple applications in agricultural and medical biotechnology. In this study, we developed pepino mosaic virus (PepMV) (family Alphaflexiviridae; genus Potexvirus) into a vector for heterologous protein expression in plants. PepMV was initially cloned in a step-wise manner, fully sequenced and the full-length infectious clone was tested for infectivity in Nicotiana benthamiana. Initial infectious clones resulted in poor replication of PepMV and lack of systemic movement. Mutations in the viral sequence affected systemic infection. Two suspected mutations were altered to restore systemic infectivity. PepMV infection was apparent as early as 4 days post agroinfiltration (dpa) inoculation in N. benthamiana. A multiple cloning site was inserted into the PepMV genome for introduction and expression of foreign genes. Several modifications to the wild-type vector were made, such as a replacing the native subgenomic promoter (SGP) with a heterologous SGP, and introduction of translational enhancers and terminators, to improve heterologous expression of the foreign gene-of-interest. GFP was used as a reporter for monitoring virus infection and protein production. Strong GFP expression was observed as early as 4 dpa with a translational enhancer. The PepMV-based vector produces rapid expression of the foreign gene in comparison to two other potexvirus-based vectors. GFP production was monitored over time and optimal protein production was recorded between 5 and 7 dpa. GFP protein levels reached up to 4% and decreased to 0.5% total soluble protein at 7 and 14 dpa, respectively. Future studies will evaluate this virus-based vector for large-scale production of pharmaceutical compounds. KEY POINTS: • A pepino mosaic virus isolate was developed into a plant-based expression vector. • Expression levels of the heterologous protein were comparable or exceeded previously developed viral vectors. • Protein levels in plants were highest between 5 and 7 days and decreased gradually.

Plant Platforms for Efficient Heterologous Protein Production

Production of recombinant proteins is primarily established in cultures of mammalian, insect and bacterial cells. Concurrently, concept of using plants to produce high-value pharmaceuticals such as vaccines, antibodies, and dietary proteins have received worldwide attention. Newer technologies for plant transformation such as plastid engineering, agroinfiltration, magnifection, and deconstructed viral vectors have been used to enhance the protein production in plants along with the inherent advantage of speed, scale, and cost of production in plant systems. Production of therapeutic proteins in plants has now a more pragmatic approach when several plant-produced vaccines and antibodies successfully completed Phase I clinical trials in humans and were further scheduled for regulatory approvals to manufacture clinical grade products on a large scale which are safe, efficacious, and meet the quality standards. The main thrust of this review is to summarize the data accumulated over the last two decades and recent development and achievements of the plant derived therapeutics. It also attempts to discuss different strategies employed to increase the production so as to make plants more competitive with the established production systems in this industry.

From Farm to Finger Prick-A Perspective on How Plants Can Help in the Fight Against COVID-19

As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, farmers across the country are plowing under their fields and laying off workers. Plant biomass has been shown by the DARPA “Blue Angel” project in 2010 to be an efficient way to rapidly make vaccines and diagnostics. This technology could pivot some areas of agriculture toward biomedical products to aid in the COVID-19 pandemic response.

Plant Virus-Derived Vectors: Applications in Agricultural and Medical Biotechnology

Major advances in our understanding of plant viral genome expression strategies and the interaction of a virus with its host for replication and movement, induction of disease, and resistance responses have been made through the generation of infectious molecules from cloned viral sequences. Autonomously replicating viral vectors derived from infectious clones have been exploited to express foreign genes in plants. Applications of virus-based vectors include the production of human/animal therapeutic proteins in plant cells and the specific study of plant biochemical processes, including those that confer resistance to pathogens. Additionally, virus-induced gene silencing, which is RNA mediated and triggered through homology-dependent RNA degradation mechanisms, has been exploited as an efficient method to study the functions of host genes in plants and to deliver small RNAs to insects. New and exciting strategies for vector engineering, delivery, and applications of plant virus-based vectors are the subject of this review.

The 3Ds in virus-like particle based-vaccines: "Design, Delivery and Dynamics"

Vaccines need to be rationally designed in order be delivered to the immune system for maximizing induction of dynamic immune responses. Virus‐like particles (VLPs) are ideal platforms for such 3D vaccines, as they allow the display of complex and native antigens in a highly repetitive form on their surface and can easily reach lymphoid organs in intact form for optimal activation of B and T cells. Adjusting size and zeta potential may allow investigators to further fine‐tune delivery to lymphoid organs. An additional way to alter vaccine transfer to lymph nodes and spleen may be the formulation with micron‐sized adjuvants that creates a local depot and results in a slow release of antigen and adjuvant. Ideally, the adjuvant in addition stimulates the innate immune system. The dynamics of the immune response may be further enhanced by inclusion of Toll‐like receptor ligands, which many VLPs naturally package. Hence, considering the 3Ds in vaccine development may allow for enhancement of their attributes to tackle complex diseases, not usually amenable to conventional vaccine strategies.

Development of a Honey Bee RNA Virus Vector Based on the Genome of a Deformed Wing Virus

We developed a honey bee RNA-virus vector based on the genome of a picorna-like Deformed wing virus (DWV), the main viral pathogen of the honey bee (Apis mellifera). To test the potential of DWV to be utilized as a vector, the 717 nt sequence coding for the enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP), flanked by the peptides targeted by viral protease, was inserted into an infectious cDNA clone of DWV in-frame between the leader protein and the virus structural protein VP2 genes. The in vitro RNA transcripts from egfp-tagged DWV cDNA clones were infectious when injected into honey bee pupae. Stable DWV particles containing genomic RNA of the recovered DWV with egfp inserts were produced, as evidenced by cesium chloride density gradient centrifugation. These particles were infectious to honey bee pupae when injected intra-abdominally. Fluorescent microscopy showed GFP expression in the infected cells and Western blot analysis demonstrated accumulation of free eGFP rather than its fusions with DWV leader protein (LP) and/or viral protein (VP) 2. Analysis of the progeny egfp-tagged DWV showed gradual accumulation of genome deletions for egfp, providing estimates for the rate of loss of a non-essential gene an insect RNA virus genome during natural infection.

Use of Potyvirus Vectors to Produce Carotenoids in Plants

Potyviruses are plus-strand RNA viruses that can be easily transformed into expression vectors to quickly express one carotenogenic enzyme or transcription factor, or more, in plant tissues. Unlike the technically challenging and time-consuming process of plant transformation, manipulation of a roughly 10,000 nt-long viral genome is rather straightforward via common molecular biology techniques. Here I describe how to insert the cDNAs of the proteins of interest into two particular positions of the cDNA of a Tobacco etch virus (TEV) mutant that lacks the viral NIb cistron and only infects the plants in which this protein is expressed. This deletion increases the space to harbor foreign sequences. The selection of the expression site must be made according to subcellular localization requirements. The recombinant virus is then inoculated into Nicotiana benthamiana plants by means of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The expression of the viral genome entails the production of carotenogenic proteins in the plant tissues with a consequent effect on the plant carotenoid pathway.

Techno-economic analysis of a plant-based platform for manufacturing antimicrobial proteins for food safety

Continuous reports of foodborne illnesses worldwide and the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria mandate novel interventions to assure the safety of our food. Treatment of a variety of foods with bacteriophage-derived lysins and bacteriocin-class antimicrobial proteins has been shown to protect against high-risk pathogens at multiple intervention points along the food supply chain. The most significant barrier to the adoption of antimicrobial proteins as a food safety intervention by the food industry is the high production cost using current fermentation-based approaches. Recently, plants have been shown to produce antimicrobial proteins with accumulation as high as 3 g/kg fresh weight and with demonstrated activity against major foodborne pathogens. To investigate potential economic advantages and scalability of this novel platform, we evaluated a highly efficient transgenic plant-based production process. A detailed process simulation model was developed to help identify economic "hot spots" for research and development focus including process operating parameters, unit operations, consumables, and/or raw materials that have the most significant impact on production costs. Our analyses indicate that the unit production cost of antimicrobial proteins in plants at commercial scale for three scenarios is $3.00-6.88/g, which can support a competitive selling price to traditional food safety treatments.

Use of plant viruses and virus-like particles for the creation of novel vaccines

In recent decades, the development of plant virology and genetic engineering techniques has resulted in the construction of plant virus-based vaccines for protection against different infectious agents, cancers and autoimmune diseases in both humans and animals. Interaction studies between plant viruses and mammalian organisms have suggested that plant viruses and virus-like particles (VLPs) are safe and noninfectious to humans and animals. Plant viruses with introduced antigens are powerful vaccine components due to their strongly organized, repetitive spatial structure; they can elicit strong immune responses similar to those observed with infectious mammalian viruses. The analysis of published data demonstrated that at least 73 experimental vaccines, including 61 prophylactic and 12 therapeutic vaccines, have been constructed using plant viruses as a carrier structure for presentation of different antigens. This information clearly demonstrates that noninfectious viruses are also applicable as vaccine carriers. Moreover, several plant viruses have been used for platform development, and corresponding vaccines are currently being tested in human and veterinary clinical trials. This review therefore discusses the main principles of plant VLP vaccine construction, emphasizing the physical, chemical, genetic and immunological aspects. Results of the latest studies suggest that several plant virus-based vaccines will join the list of approved human and animal vaccines in the near future.

Development of Soybean Yellow Mottle Mosaic Virus-Based Expression Vector for Heterologous Protein Expression in French Bean

Plant virus-based vectors provide attractive and valuable tools for rapid production of recombinant protein in large quantities as they produce systemic infections in differentiated plant tissues. In the present study, we engineered the Soybean yellow mottle mosaic virus (SYMMV) as a gene expression vector which is a promising candidate for systemic expression of foreign proteins in French bean plants. Full virus vector strategy was exploited for insertion of foreign gene by inserting MCS through PCR in the circular pJET-SYMMV clone. To examine the ability of the SYMMV vector system, GFP gene was cloned after the start codon of coat protein (CP) so that its expression was driven by the SYMMV-CP subgenomic promoter. When in vitro run off SYMMV-GFP transcript was mechanically inoculated to French bean leaves, good level of GFP expression was observed through confocal microscopy up to 40 dpi. Expression of heterologous protein was also confirmed through ISEM, DAC-ELISA and RT-PCR with specific primers at 20 dpi. The recombinant SYMMV construct was stable in in vitro runoff transcript inoculated plants but the inserted GFP was lost in progeny virion inoculated plants. The system developed here will be useful for further studies of SYMMV gene functions and exploitation of SYMMV as a gene expression vector.

Development of a new tobamovirus-based viral vector for protein expression in plants

Plants are becoming an interesting alternative system for the heterologous production of pharmaceutical proteins, providing a more scalable, cost-effective, and biologically safer option than the current expression systems. The development of plant virus expression vectors has allowed rapid and high-level transient expression of recombinant genes, and, in turn, provided an attractive plant-based production platform. Here we report the development of vectors based on the tobamovirus Pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV) to be used in transient expression of foreign genes. In this PMMoV vector, a middle part of the viral coat protein gene was replaced by the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene, and this recombinant genome was assembled in a binary vector suitable for plant agroinoculation. The accumulation of GFP was evaluated by observation of green fluorescent signals under UV light and by western blotting. Furthermore, by using this vector, the multiepitope gene for chikungunya virus was successfully expressed and confirmed by western blotting. This PMMoV-based vector represents an alternative system for a high-level production of heterologous protein in plants.

Gas Exchange Rates Decrease and Leaf Temperature Increases in Nicotiana benthamiana Leaves Transiently Overexpressing Hemagglutinin in an Agrobacterium-Assisted Viral Vector System

In this study, gas exchange characteristics and temperature of Nicotiana benthamiana leaves transiently overexpressing hemagglutinin (HA), an influenza vaccine antigen, with an Agrobacterium tumefaciens-assisted viral vector were investigated. Inoculation of leaves with an empty viral vector not containing the HA gene decreased the net photosynthetic rate (P_n) and transpiration rate (T) from 2 to 3 days post-infiltration (DPI) in the A. tumefaciens suspension. Expression of HA with the vector decreased P_n and T to much lower levels until 4 DPI. Such significant decreases were not observed in leaves infiltrated with suspension of A. tumefaciens not carrying the viral vector or in uninfiltrated leaves. Thus, viral vector inoculation itself decreased P_n and T to a certain extent and the HA expression further decreased them. The decreases in P_n and T in empty vector-inoculated and HA expression vector-inoculated leaves were associated with decreases in stomatal conductance, suggesting that the reduction of gas exchange rates was caused at least in part by stomatal closure. More detailed gas exchange and chlorophyll fluorescence analyses revealed that in HA vector-inoculated leaves, the capacity of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase to assimilate CO₂ and the capacity of photosynthetic electron transport in planta were downregulated, which contributed also to the decrease in P_n. Leaf temperature (LT) increased in viral vector-inoculated leaves, which was associated with the decrease in T. When HA vector-inoculated leaves were grown at air temperatures (ATs) of 21, 23, and 26°C post-infiltration, HA accumulated earlier in leaves and the days required for HA content to attain its peak became shorter, as AT was higher. The highest LT was found 1-2 days earlier than the highest leaf HA content under all post-infiltration AT conditions. This phenomenon could be applicable in a non-destructive technique to detect the optimum harvesting date for individual plants to determine the day when leaf HA content reaches its maximum level, irrespective of spatiotemporal variation of AT, in a plant growth facility.

Technoeconomic Modeling of Plant-Based Griffithsin Manufacturing

Griffithsin is a marine algal lectin that exhibits broad-spectrum antiviral activity by binding oligomannose glycans on viral envelope glycoproteins, including those found in HIV-1, HSV-2, SARS, HCV and other enveloped viruses. An efficient, scalable and cost-effective manufacturing process for Griffithsin is essential for the adoption of this drug in human antiviral prophylaxis and therapy, particularly in cost-sensitive indications such as topical microbicides for HIV-1 prevention. The production of certain classes of recombinant biologics in plants can offer scalability, cost and environmental impact advantages over traditional biomanufacturing platforms. Previously, we showed the technical viability of producing recombinant Griffithsin in plants. In this study, we conducted a technoeconomic analysis (TEA) of plant-produced Griffithsin manufactured at commercial launch volumes for use in HIV microbicides. Data derived from multiple non-sequential manufacturing batches conducted at pilot scale and existing facility designs were used to build a technoeconomic model using SuperPro Designer® modeling software. With an assumed commercial launch volume of 20 kg Griffithsin/year for 6.7 million doses of Griffithsin microbicide at 3 mg/dose, a transient vector expression yield of 0.52 g Griffithsin/kg leaf biomass, recovery efficiency of 70%, and purity of >99%, we calculated a manufacturing cost for the drug substance of $0.32/dose and estimated a bulk product cost of $0.38/dose assuming a 20% net fee for a contract manufacturing organization (CMO). This is the first report modeling the manufacturing economics of Griffithsin. The process analyzed is readily scalable and subject to efficiency improvements and could provide the needed market volumes of the lectin within an acceptable range of costs, even for cost-constrained products such as microbicides. The manufacturing process was also assessed for environmental, health and safety impact and found to have a highly favorable environmental output index with negligible risks to health and safety. The results of this study help validate the plant-based manufacturing platform and should assist in selecting preferred indications for Griffithsin as a novel drug.

A guide to the contained use of plant virus infectious clones

Plant virus infectious clones are important tools with wide-ranging applications in different areas of biology and medicine. Their uses in plant pathology include the study of plant-virus interactions, and screening of germplasm as part of prebreeding programmes for virus resistance. They can also be modified to induce transient plant gene silencing (Virus Induced Gene Silencing - VIGS) and as expression vectors for plant or exogenous proteins, with applications in both plant pathology and more generally for the study of plant gene function. Plant viruses are also increasingly being investigated as expression vectors for in planta production of pharmaceutical products, known as molecular farming. However, plant virus infectious clones may pose a risk to the environment due to their ability to reconstitute fully functional, transmissible viruses. These risks arise from both their inherent pathogenicity and the effect of any introduced genetic modifications. Effective containment measures are therefore required. There has been no single comprehensive review of the biosafety considerations for the contained use of genetically modified plant viruses, despite their increasing importance across many biological fields. This review therefore explores the biosafety considerations for working with genetically modified plant viruses in contained environments, with focus on plant growth facilities. It includes regulatory frameworks, risk assessment, assignment of biosafety levels, facility features and working practices. The review is based on international guidance together with information provided by plant virus researchers.

Expression of Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 (HIV-1) coat protein genes in plants using cotton leaf curl Multan betasatellite-based vector

It has already been demonstrated that a betasatellite associated with cotton leaf curl Multan virus (CLCuMB) can be used as a plant and animal gene delivery vector to plants. To examine the ability of CLCuMB as a tool to transfer coat protein genes of HIV-1 to plants, two recombinant CLCuMB constructs in which the CLCuMB βC1 ORF was replaced with two HIV-1 genes fractions including a 696 bp DNA fragment related to the HIV-1 p24 gene and a 1501 bp DNA fragment related to the HIV-1 gag gene were constructed. Gag is the HIV-1 coat protein gene and p24 is a component of the particle capsid. Gag and p24 are used for vaccine production. Recombinant constructs were inoculated to Nicotiana glutinosa and N. benthamiana plants in the presence of an Iranian isolate of Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV-[Ab]) as a helper virus. PCR analysis of inoculated plants indicated that p24 gene was successfully replicated in inoculated plants, but the gag gene was not. Real-time PCR and ELISA analysis of N. glutinosa and N. benthamiana plants containing the replicative forms of recombinant construct of CLCuMB/p24 indicated that p24 was expressed in these plants. This CLCuMB-based expression system offers the possibility of mass production of recombinant HIV-1 p24 protein in plants.

Icosahedral plant viral nanoparticles - bioinspired synthesis of nanomaterials/nanostructures

Viral nanotechnology utilizes virus nanoparticles (VNPs) and virus-like nanoparticles (VLPs) of plant viruses as highly versatile platforms for materials synthesis and molecular entrapment that can be used in the nanotechnological fields, such as in next-generation nanoelectronics, nanocatalysis, biosensing and optics, and biomedical applications, such as for targeting, therapeutic delivery, and non-invasive in vivo imaging with high specificity and selectivity. In particular, plant virus capsids provide biotemplates for the production of novel nanostructured materials with organic/inorganic moieties incorporated in a very precise and controlled manner. Interestingly, capsid proteins of spherical plant viruses can self-assemble into well-organized icosahedral three-dimensional (3D) nanoscale multivalent architectures with high monodispersity and structural symmetry. Using viral genetic and protein engineering of icosahedral viruses with a variety of sizes, the interior, exterior and the interfaces between coat protein (CP) subunits can be manipulated to fabricate materials with a wide range of desirable properties allowing for biomineralization, encapsulation, infusion, controlled self-assembly, and multivalent ligand display of nanoparticles or molecules for varied applications. In this review, we discuss the various functional nanomaterials/nanostructures developed using the VNPs and VLPs of different icosahedral plant viruses and their nano(bio)technological and nanomedical applications.

Effect of temperature post viral vector inoculation on the amount of hemagglutinin transiently expressed in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves

Transient gene expression in whole plants by using viral vectors is promising as a rapid, mass production system for biopharmaceutical proteins. Recent studies have indicated that plant growth conditions such as air temperature markedly influence the accumulation levels of target proteins. Here, we investigated time course of the amount of recombinant hemagglutinin (HA), a vaccine antigen of influenza virus, in leaves of Nicotiana benthamiana plants grown at 20°C or 25°C post viral vector inoculation. The HA content per unit of leaf biomass increased and decreased from 4 to 6 days post inoculation at 20°C and 25°C, respectively, irrespective of the subcellular localization of HA. The overall HA contents were higher when HA was targeted to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) rather than the apoplast. Necrosis of leaf tissues was specifically observed in plants inoculated with the ER-targeting vector and grown at 25°C. With the ER-targeting vector, the maximum HA contents at 20°C and 25°C were recorded at 6 and 4 days post inoculation, respectively, and were comparable to each other. HA contents thereafter decreased at both temperatures; the rate of reduction appeared faster at 25°C than at 20°C. From a practical point of view, our results indicate that the strategy of targeting HA to the ER, growing plants at a lower temperature of 20°C, and harvesting leaves at around a week after vector inoculation should be implemented to obtain a high HA yield stably and efficiently.

Helical plant viral nanoparticles-bioinspired synthesis of nanomaterials and nanostructures

Viral nanotechnology is revolutionizing the biomimetic and bioinspired synthesis of novel nanomaterials. Bottom-up nanofabrication by self-assembly of individual molecular components of elongated viral nanoparticles (VNPs) and virus-like particles (VLPs) has resulted in the production of superior materials and structures in the nano(bio)technological fields. Viral capsids are attractive materials, because of their symmetry, monodispersity, and polyvalency. Helical VNPs/VLPs are unique prefabricated nanoscaffolds with large surface area to volume ratios and high aspect ratios, and enable the construction of exquisite supramolecular nanostructures. This review discusses the genetic and chemical modifications of outer, inner, and interface surfaces of a viral protein cage that will almost certainly lead to the development of superior next-generation targeted drug delivery and imaging systems, biosensors, energy storage and optoelectronic devices, therapeutics, and catalysts.

Production of Japanese Encephalitis Virus Antigens in Plants Using Bamboo Mosaic Virus-Based Vector

Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is among the major threats to public health in Asia. For disease control and prevention, the efficient production of safe and effective vaccines against JEV is in urgent need. In this study, we produced a plant-made JEV vaccine candidate using a chimeric virus particle (CVP) strategy based on bamboo mosaic virus (BaMV) for epitope presentation. The chimeric virus, designated BJ2A, was constructed by fusing JEV envelope protein domain III (EDIII) at the N-terminus of BaMV coat protein, with an insertion of the foot-and-mouth disease virus 2A peptide to facilitate the production of both unfused and epitope-presenting for efficient assembly of the CVP vaccine candidate. The strategy allowed stable maintenance of the fusion construct over long-term serial passages in plants. Immuno-electron microscopy examination and immunization assays revealed that BJ2A is able to present the EDIII epitope on the surface of the CVPs, which stimulated effective neutralizing antibodies against JEV infection in mice. This study demonstrates the efficient production of an effective CVP vaccine candidate against JEV in plants by the BaMV-based epitope presentation system.

A CGMMV genome-replicon vector with partial sequences of coat protein gene efficiently expresses GFP in Nicotiana benthamiana

A highly infectious clone of Cucumber green mottle mosaic virus (CGMMV), a cucurbit-infecting tobamovirus was utilized for designing of gene expression vectors. Two versions of vector were examined for their efficacy in expressing the green fluorescent protein (GFP) in Nicotiana benthamiana. When the GFP gene was inserted at the stop codon of coat protein (CP) gene of the CGMMV genome without any read-through codon, systemic expression of GFP, as well as virion formation and systemic symptoms expression were obtained in N. benthamiana. The qRT-PCR analysis showed 23 fold increase of GFP over actin at 10days post inoculation (dpi), which increased to 45 fold at 14dpi and thereafter the GFP expression was significantly declined. Further, we show that when the most of the CP sequence is deleted retaining only the first 105 nucleotides, the shortened vector containing GFP in frame of original CP open reading frame (ORF) resulted in 234 fold increase of GFP expression over actin at 5dpi in N. benthamiana without the formation of virions and disease symptoms. Our study demonstrated that a simple manipulation of CP gene in the CGMMV genome while preserving the translational frame of CP resulted in developing a virus-free, rapid and efficient foreign protein expression system in the plant. The CGMMV based vectors developed in this study may be potentially useful for the production of edible vaccines in cucurbits.

Rewiring carotenoid biosynthesis in plants using a viral vector

Plants can be engineered to sustainably produce compounds of nutritional, industrial or pharmaceutical relevance. This is, however, a challenging task as extensive regulation of biosynthetic pathways often hampers major metabolic changes. Here we describe the use of a viral vector derived from Tobacco etch virus to express a whole heterologous metabolic pathway that produces the health-promoting carotenoid lycopene in tobacco tissues. The pathway consisted in three enzymes from the soil bacteria Pantoea ananatis. Lycopene is present at undetectable levels in chloroplasts of non-infected leaves. In tissues infected with the viral vector, however, lycopene comprised approximately 10% of the total carotenoid content. Our research further showed that plant viruses that express P. ananatis phytoene synthase (crtB), one of the three enzymes of the heterologous pathway, trigger an accumulation of endogenous carotenoids, which together with a reduction in chlorophylls eventually result in a bright yellow pigmentation of infected tissues in various host-virus combinations. So, besides illustrating the potential of viral vectors for engineering complex metabolic pathways, we also show a yellow carotenoid-based reporter that can be used to visually track infection dynamics of plant viruses either alone or in combination with other visual markers.

Efficient Transient Expression of Recombinant Proteins in Plants by the Novel pEff Vector Based on the Genome of Potato Virus X

Agroinfiltration of plant leaves with binary vectors carrying a gene of interest within a plant viral vector is a rapid and efficient method for protein production in plants. Previously, we constructed a self-replicating vector, pA7248AMV, based on the genetic elements of potato virus X (PVX), and have shown that this vector can be used for the expression of recombinant proteins in Nicotiana benthamiana. However, this vector is almost 18 kb long and therefore not convenient for genetic manipulation. Furthermore, for efficient expression of the target protein it should be co-agroinfiltrated with an additional binary vector expressing a suppressor of post-transcriptional gene silencing. Here, we improved this expression system by creating the novel pEff vector. Its backbone is about 5 kb shorter than the original vector and it contains an expression cassette for the silencing suppressor, P24, from grapevine leafroll-associated virus-2 alongside PVX genetic elements, thus eliminating the need of co-agroinfiltration. The pEff vector provides green fluorescent protein expression levels of up to 30% of total soluble protein. The novel vector was used for expression of the influenza vaccine candidate, M2eHBc, consisting of an extracellular domain of influenza virus M2 protein (M2e) fused to hepatitis B core antigen. Using the pEff system, M2eHBc was expressed to 5-10% of total soluble protein, several times higher than with original pA7248AMV vector. Plant-produced M2eHBc formed virus-like particles in vivo, as required for its use as a vaccine. The new self-replicating pEff vector could be used for fast and efficient production of various recombinant proteins in plants.

Cotton Leaf Curl Multan Betasatellite DNA as a Tool to Deliver and Express the Human B-Cell Lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) Gene in Plants

The betasatellite DNA associated with Cotton leaf curl Multan virus (CLCuMB) contains a single complementary-sense ORF, βC1, which is a pathogenicity determinant. CLCuMB was able to replicate in plants in the presence of diverse helper geminiviruses, including Tomato leaf curl virus-Australia (TLCV-Au), Iranian isolate of Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV-[Ab]), and Beet curly top virus (BCTV-Svr), and can be used as a plant gene delivery vector. To test the hypothesis that CLCuMB has the potential to act as an animal gene delivery vector, a specific insertion construct was produced by the introduction of a human B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) cDNA into a mutant DNA of CLCuMB in which the βC1 was deleted (β∆C1). The recombinant βΔC1-Bcl-2 construct was successfully replicated in tomato and tobacco plants in the presence of TLCV-Au, BCTV-Svr and TYLCV-[Ab]. Real-time PCR and Western blot analyses of plants containing the replicative forms of recombinant βΔC1-Bcl-2 DNA showed that Bcl-2 gene was expressed in an acceptable level in these plants, indicating that β∆C1 can be used as a tool to deliver and express animal genes in plants. This CLCuMB-based system, having its own promoter activity, offers the possibility of production of animal recombinant proteins in plants.

Plant virus nanoparticles: new applications and new benefits

For over two decades now, plants have been explored for their potential to act as production platforms for biopharmaceuticals, such as vaccines and monoclonal antibodies. More recently, plant viruses have been designed as nontoxic nanoparticles that can target a variety of cancers and thus empower the immune system to slow or even reverse tumor progression. The following paper describes the employment of plant virus expression vectors for the treatment of some of the most challenging diseases known today. The paper concludes with a projection of the multiple avenues by which virus nanoparticles could impact developing countries.

Development of Virus-Induced Gene Expression and Silencing Vector Derived from Grapevine Algerian Latent Virus

Grapevine Algerian latent virus (GALV) is a member of the genus Tombusvirus in the Tombusviridae and infects not only woody perennial grapevine plant but also herbaceous Nicotiana benthamiana plant. In this study, we developed GALV-based gene expression and virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) vectors in N. benthamiana. The GALV coat protein deletion vector, pGMG, was applied to express the reporter gene, green fluorescence protein (GFP), but the expression of GFP was not detected due to the necrotic cell death on the infiltrated leaves. The p19 silencing suppressor of GALV was engineered to inactivate its expression and GFP was successfully expressed with unrelated silencing suppressor, HC-Pro, from soybean mosaic virus. The pGMG vector was used to knock down magnesium chelatase (ChlH) gene in N. benthamaina and the silencing phenotype was clearly observed on systemic leaves. Altogether, the GALV-derived vector is expected to be an attractive tool for useful gene expression and VIGS vectors in grapevine as well as N. benthamiana.

Engineering of soybean mosaic virus as a versatile tool for studying protein-protein interactions in soybean

Transient gene expression approaches are valuable tools for rapid introduction of genes of interest and characterization of their functions in plants. Although agroinfiltration is the most effectively and routinely used method for transient expression of multiple genes in various plant species, this approach has been largely unsuccessful in soybean. In this study, we engineered soybean mosaic virus (SMV) as a dual-gene delivery vector to simultaneously deliver and express two genes in soybean cells. We further show the application of the SMV-based dual vector for a bimolecular fluorescence complementation assay to visualize in vivo protein-protein interactions in soybean and for a co-immunoprecipitation assay to identify cellular proteins interacting with SMV helper component protease. This approach provides a rapid and cost-effective tool for transient introduction of multiple traits into soybean and for in vivo characterization of the soybean cellular protein interaction network.

Fluorescent Tobacco mosaic virus-Derived Bio-Nanoparticles for Intravital Two-Photon Imaging

Multi-photon intravital imaging has become a powerful tool to investigate the healthy and diseased brain vasculature in living animals. Although agents for multi-photon fluorescence microscopy of the microvasculature are available, issues related to stability, bioavailability, toxicity, cost or chemical adaptability remain to be solved. In particular, there is a need for highly fluorescent dyes linked to particles that do not cross the blood brain barrier (BBB) in brain diseases like tumor or stroke to estimate the functional blood supply. Plant virus particles possess a number of distinct advantages over other particles, the most important being the multi-valency of chemically addressable sites on the particle surface. This multi-valency, together with biological compatibility and inert nature, makes plant viruses ideal carriers for in vivo imaging agents. Here, we show that the well-known Tobacco mosaic virus is a suitable nanocarrier for two-photon dyes and for intravital imaging of the mouse brain vasculature.

Impact of cis-acting elements' frequency in transcription activity in dicot and monocot plants

The production of new cultivars via recombinant DNA technology is important in applied agriculture. Promoters play fundamental roles in successful transformation and gene expression. Fragments of the upstream regulatory region of the movement protein gene of the Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV; two fragments) and Watermelon chlorotic stunt virus (WmCSV, two fragments) and one fragment of the coat protein putative promoter of TYLCV (CPTY-pro) were isolated to assess their abilities to drive expression in monocot and dicot plants. We used bioinformatic analyses to identify tentative motifs in the fragments. The five promoter fragments were isolated, fused with the GUS reporter gene, and transformed into tomato, watermelon, and rice plantlets via Agrobacterium infiltration. GUS expression driven by each putative promoter was analysed using histochemical and fluorometric analyses. In both dicots and the monocots, the highest level of GUS expression was obtained using a truncated regulatory region from TYLCV (MMPTY-pro) followed by a truncated regulatory region from WmCSV (MMPWm-pro). However, the corresponding full-length fragments from TYLCV and WmCSV showed essentially equivalent expression levels in the fluorometric GUS assay compared with the enhanced Cauliflower mosaic virus e35S-pro. In addition, CPTY-pro showed no expression in either the dicots or the monocot. This study demonstrated that MMPTY-pro and MMPWm-pro may be useful as plant promoters.

When plant virology met Agrobacterium: the rise of the deconstructed clones

In the early days of molecular farming, Agrobacterium-mediated stable genetic transformation and the use of plant virus-based vectors were considered separate and competing technologies with complementary strengths and weaknesses. The demonstration that 'agroinfection' was the most efficient way of delivering virus-based vectors to their target plants blurred the distinction between the two technologies and permitted the development of 'deconstructed' vectors based on a number of plant viruses. The tobamoviruses, potexviruses, tobraviruses, geminiviruses and comoviruses have all been shown to be particularly well suited to the development of such vectors in dicotyledonous plants, while the development of equivalent vectors for use in monocotyledonous plants has lagged behind. Deconstructed viral vectors have proved extremely effective at the rapid, high-level production of a number of pharmaceutical proteins, some of which are currently undergoing clinical evaluation.

Commercial-scale biotherapeutics manufacturing facility for plant-made pharmaceuticals

Rapid, large-scale manufacture of medical countermeasures can be uniquely met by the plant-made-pharmaceutical platform technology. As a participant in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Blue Angel project, the Caliber Biotherapeutics facility was designed, constructed, commissioned and released a therapeutic target (H1N1 influenza subunit vaccine) in <18 months from groundbreaking. As of 2015, this facility was one of the world's largest plant-based manufacturing facilities, with the capacity to process over 3500 kg of plant biomass per week in an automated multilevel growing environment using proprietary LED lighting. The facility can commission additional plant grow rooms that are already built to double this capacity. In addition to the commercial-scale manufacturing facility, a pilot production facility was designed based on the large-scale manufacturing specifications as a way to integrate product development and technology transfer. The primary research, development and manufacturing system employs vacuum-infiltrated Nicotiana benthamiana plants grown in a fully contained, hydroponic system for transient expression of recombinant proteins. This expression platform has been linked to a downstream process system, analytical characterization, and assessment of biological activity. This integrated approach has demonstrated rapid, high-quality production of therapeutic monoclonal antibody targets, including a panel of rituximab biosimilar/biobetter molecules and antiviral antibodies against influenza and dengue fever.

A potyvirus vector efficiently targets recombinant proteins to chloroplasts, mitochondria and nuclei in plant cells when expressed at the amino terminus of the polyprotein

Plant virus-based expression systems allow quick and efficient production of recombinant proteins in plant biofactories. Among them, a system derived from tobacco etch virus (TEV; genus potyvirus) permits coexpression of equimolar amounts of several recombinant proteins. This work analyzed how to target recombinant proteins to different subcellular localizations in the plant cell using this system. We constructed TEV clones in which green fluorescent protein (GFP), with a chloroplast transit peptide (cTP), a nuclear localization signal (NLS) or a mitochondrial targeting peptide (mTP) was expressed either as the most amino-terminal product or embedded in the viral polyprotein. Results showed that cTP and mTP mediated efficient translocation of GFP to the corresponding organelle only when present at the amino terminus of the viral polyprotein. In contrast, the NLS worked efficiently at both positions. Viruses expressing GFP in the amino terminus of the viral polyprotein produced milder symptoms. Untagged GFPs and cTP and NLS tagged amino-terminal GFPs accumulated to higher amounts in infected tissues. Finally, viral progeny from clones with internal GFPs maintained the extra gene better. These observations will help in the design of potyvirus-based vectors able to coexpress several proteins while targeting different subcellular localizations, as required in plant metabolic engineering.

In planta production of flock house virus transencapsidated RNA and its potential use as a vaccine

We have developed a transencapsidated vaccine delivery system based on the insect virus, Flock House virus (FHV). FHV is attractive due to its small genome size, simple organization, and nonpathogenic characteristics. With the insertion of a Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) origin of assembly (Oa), the independently replicating FHV RNA1 can be transencapsidated by TMV coat protein. In this study, we demonstrated that the Oa-adapted FHV RNA1 transencapsidation process can take place in planta, by using a bipartite plant expression vector system, where TMV coat protein is expressed by another plant virus vector, Foxtail mosaic virus (FoMV). Dual infection in the same cell by both FHV and FoMV was observed. Though an apparent classical coat protein-mediated resistance repressed FHV expression, this was overcome by delaying inoculation of the TMV coat protein vector by 3 days after FHV vector inoculation. Expression of the transgene marker in animals by these in vivo-generated transencapsidated nanoparticles was confirmed by mouse vaccination, which also showed an improved vaccine response compared to similar in vitro-produced vaccines.

Manufacturing economics of plant-made biologics: case studies in therapeutic and industrial enzymes

Production of recombinant biologics in plants has received considerable attention as an alternative platform to traditional microbial and animal cell culture. Industrially relevant features of plant systems include proper eukaryotic protein processing, inherent safety due to lack of adventitious agents, more facile scalability, faster production (transient systems), and potentially lower costs. Lower manufacturing cost has been widely claimed as an intuitive feature of the platform by the plant-made biologics community, even though cost information resides within a few private companies and studies accurately documenting such an advantage have been lacking. We present two technoeconomic case studies representing plant-made enzymes for diverse applications: human butyrylcholinesterase produced indoors for use as a medical countermeasure and cellulases produced in the field for the conversion of cellulosic biomass into ethanol as a fuel extender. Production economics were modeled based on results reported with the latest-generation expression technologies on Nicotiana host plants. We evaluated process unit operations and calculated bulk active and per-dose or per-unit costs using SuperPro Designer modeling software. Our analyses indicate that substantial cost advantages over alternative platforms can be achieved with plant systems, but these advantages are molecule/product-specific and depend on the relative cost-efficiencies of alternative sources of the same product.

Quantitative evaluation of E1 endoglucanase recovery from tobacco leaves using the vacuum infiltration-centrifugation method

As a production platform for recombinant proteins, plant leaf tissue has many advantages, but commercialization of this technology has been hindered by high recovery and purification costs. Vacuum infiltration-centrifugation (VI-C) is a technique to obtain extracellularly-targeted products from the apoplast wash fluid (AWF). Because of its selective recovery of secreted proteins without homogenizing the whole tissue, VI-C can potentially reduce downstream production costs. Lab scale experiments were conducted to quantitatively evaluate the VI-C method and compared to homogenization techniques in terms of product purity, concentration, and other desirable characteristics. From agroinfiltrated Nicotiana benthamiana leaves, up to 81% of a truncated version of E1 endoglucanase from Acidothermus cellulolyticus was recovered with VI-C versus homogenate extraction, and average purity and concentration increases of 4.2-fold and 3.1-fold, respectively, were observed. Formulas were developed to predict recovery yields of secreted protein obtained by performing multiple rounds of VI-C on the same leaf tissue. From this, it was determined that three rounds of VI-C recovered 97% of the total active recombinant protein accessible to the VI-C procedure. The results suggest that AWF recovery is an efficient process that could reduce downstream processing steps and costs for plant-made recombinant proteins.

Tombusvirus-based vector systems to permit over-expression of genes or that serve as sensors of antiviral RNA silencing in plants

A next generation Tomato bushy stunt virus (TBSV) coat protein gene replacement vector system is described that can be applied by either RNA inoculation or through agroinfiltration. A vector expressing GFP rapidly yields high levels of transient gene expression in inoculated leaves of various plant species, as illustrated for Nicotiana benthamiana, cowpea, tomato, pepper, and lettuce. A start-codon mutation to down-regulate the dose of the P19 silencing suppressor reduces GFP accumulation, whereas mutations that result in undetectable levels of P19 trigger rapid silencing of GFP. Compared to existing virus vectors the TBSV system has a unique combination of a very broad host range, rapid and high levels of replication and gene expression, and the ability to regulate its suppressor. These features are attractive for quick transient assays in numerous plant species for over-expression of genes of interest, or as a sensor to monitor the efficacy of antiviral RNA silencing.