Engineering a Cure for Diabetes Conclusions
Based on results from above experiments, we have successfully cloned the IL-13 gene and the chimeric CTB-IL-13 gene, and introduced both of them into low-nicotine tobacco plants. The presence of the foreign gene in the transgenic plants was confirmed by PCR. RT-PCR and northern blot demonstrated that the transgenes were transcribed in the transgenic plants. Western blot further showed that recombinant protein CTB-IL-13 was produced in the transgenic plants. Furthermore, the results suggest that the recombinant protein is glycosylated. Finally, the results have proven that the plant-derived IL-13 or CTB-IL-13 can induce T-cell proliferation, illustrating its biological activity. Our on-going experiments are focused on GM1-ELISA binding assay to determine if the plant-produced CTB-IL-13 fusion protein can efficiently bind to mucosal cells and feeding tests to conclude if the CTB-IL-13 and IL-13 recombinant proteins can reduce or prevent the incidence of T1D in NOS mice. Thus, this study provides a solid foundation on the use of the plant-derived oral cytokine (plantikine) for treatment of T1D.
