Transgenic Plants Expressing Animal Proteins Through Corn Processing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Animal agriculture for protein production is environmentally detrimental and economically challenging, with recombinant protein production costs exceeding those of animal-derived proteins, necessitating a more cost-effective and sustainable method.
Innovation Solution
Engineering transgenic plants to express animal-derived proteins like myoglobin, casein, and chymosin, utilizing existing corn processing facilities to isolate and process these proteins, optimizing recovery through novel steps in wet-milling, dry-milling, and dry-grind ethanol processes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If recombinant protein production is performed using fermentation or cell culture processes, then animal proteins can be produced without animal agriculture environmental impacts, but production costs become prohibitively high (ranging from $100's/lb compared to animal agriculture costs)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the production host from microbial or animal cell systems to plant-based systems, fundamentally altering the production parameters. This shift leverages plants' natural ability to perform photosynthesis and protein synthesis, enabling cost-effective production while maintaining environmental sustainability. The plant-based system achieves both low environmental impact and competitive production costs by utilizing established agricultural infrastructure.
2Ease of manufacture
If transgenic plants are engineered to express animal-derived proteins, then production costs can be reduced to be competitive with animal agriculture, but new technology and processing steps are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by using existing corn processing facilities for multiple purposes: traditional corn product manufacturing and new recombinant protein isolation. The same infrastructure that processes corn into starch, oil, and meal can be adapted to isolate animal-derived proteins like myoglobin, casein, and chymosin, thereby reducing the need for entirely new processing facilities while maintaining cost competitiveness.
3Ease of manufacture
If existing corn processing facilities are utilized for protein isolation, then infrastructure costs are reduced and production becomes more economical, but optimization of recovery processes is needed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs preliminary action by modifying the corn processing workflow to include specific steps that facilitate protein isolation before the material proceeds to traditional processing stages. By incorporating preliminary extraction and separation steps early in the process, the system optimizes protein recovery efficiency while utilizing existing infrastructure, ensuring both economic viability and high productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
The transgenic plants engineered to express animal-derived proteins, such as myoglobin, casein, chymosin, hemoglobin and actin and other animal-derived proteins, and the nucleic acids encoding the same are described herein. Methods of making and identifying the transgenic plants, processing the seeds from the transgenic plants that contain the expressed animal-derived proteins, isolating and purifying the expressed proteins, and utilizing the expressed proteins in food are provided. Food and food ingredients that include myoglobin, casein, chymosin, hemoglobin and actin are also disclosed herein. Genes encoding myoglobin, casein, hemoglobin and actin forms that have been modified to improve performance as components of food are described.