People use plants for the treatments of various diseases from ancient times and a new discovery has led the history repeat again scientifically. Scientists made a discovery for the standard treatment of malaria that includes transgenic plants.
According to Science Daily, scientists have discovered the twice production of an active component in the plant, Artemisia Annua, which is considered as the main component for the treatments of malaria worldwide. Looking back in the history, the transgenic plant, Artemisia Annua has been used for over 2,000 years as a traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of fevers.
The active component which is being used for the treatment of malaria from this transgenic plant is the artemisinin molecule. Reports say that a Chinese scientist Youyou Tu has been awarded the Nobel Prize in the year 2015 for the discovery of this active molecule and its uses for malaria treatment therapies.
Phys.org wrote that nevertheless the strong effectiveness of this active molecule from the transgenic plant for treating malaria, there was a problem which was being faced before. The problem was low productivity of the component by natural means. If produced by chemical synthesis, it is too much expensive resulting in an expensive drug.
The new discovery from the scientists of Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG) and Sequentia Biotech S.L. has obtained a gene in Artemisia Annua transgenic plant which can produce twice amount of artemisinin. This research work paper was published in "The Plant Journal". "We have discovered that the AaMYB1 gene has a dual function: it promotes trichome formation in the leaves and artemisinin synthesis inside the trichomes," a research team scientist said.
This discovery from the transgenic plant is a major step towards reducing the cost of the necessary drug for the treatment of malaria. With the manipulation of the AaMYB1 gene, scientists have now managed to grow much more amount of plant which can produce a huge amount of artemisinin. As per reports from World Health Organisation (WHO), approx. 90% malaria cases were reported in Sub-Saharan Africa, out of which 92% death occurred. This new discovery can change the future of the data and treat malaria effectively.
