Bio611 Assignment Anis Puteri Nabihah 4B1

FACULTY OF APPLIED SCIENCE
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONOURS) BIOLOGY

CAMPUS KUALA PILAH, NEGERI SEMBILAN
BIO 611
PLANT PHYSIOLOGY
POTATO AS THE PLANT-BASED EDIBLE VACCINE IN SAVING THE LIVES
PREPARED BY:
NAME STUDENT ID GROUP
ANIS NAJIHAH BINTI IBRAHIM 2021103057 AS2014B1
NIK NOOR NABIHAH BINTI MOHD ARIS 2021125677 AS2014B1

PUTERI NURFASHA AZWA BINTI FAISAL 2021131985 AS2014B1
PREPARED FOR:
DR. NOR’AISHAH BINTI ABU SHAH
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Vaccines are biological preparations that improve immunity to diseases and form an important
innovation of 19th century research (Laere et al., 2016). It contains a protein that resembles a
disease-causing microorganism and is often made from weak or killed forms of the microbe.
However, according to Rybicki (2014), the unavailability of vaccines for the treatment of fatal
diseases has caused problems and driven global attention towards production of safer, easier, and
more effective vaccines. Among these, plant-based vaccine production has received particular
attention due to the numerous advantages it may offer. For instance, Solanum tuberosum or
potato. This type of vaccine also was produced from plants which are genetically modified
(Takeyama et al., 2015). Takeyama et al. (2015) also stated that in the production of edible
vaccines from genetically-modified plants, the gene-encoding bacterial or viral disease-causing
agent can be incorporated in plants without losing its immunogenic property. Moreover, the use
of transgenic potatoes for the vaccines also can prevent the ripening from occur unless they are
exposed to the external ethylene. This can control the physiological functions of potatoes that
contain vaccines precisely. Plant-based vaccine face many challenges in which acceptance by the
population as it is necessary to make aware the society about its use and benefits. When
compared to other traditional vaccines, edible vaccines are cost effective, efficient, and safe as it
promises better prevention option from diseases (Rybicki, 2014)
2.0 BODY OF CONTENT

2.1 POTATO IN PRODUCTION OF VACCINE
In 1989, the effort to produce a plant-based vaccine was formulated by Hiatt and co-workers
(Rosales-Mendoza, 2020). According to the previous study by Laere et al. (2016), he stated there
that Dr. Arntzen introduced the concept of using transgenic plants to produce and deliver subunit
vaccines. This idea of Arntzen proved that the edible vaccine can annihilate the restrictions in the
production of traditional vaccines. To date, there are many transgenic plants that have been used
to produce four different types of vaccines such as bacterial vaccines, viral vaccines, parasite
vaccines, and immunocontraceptive vaccines (Rybicki, 2014). For instance, in tobacco plant
Streptococcus mutants, a surface antigen is expressed from hepatitis B which is the milestone in
edible vaccine production (Laere et al., 2016). In parallel to the production of edible vaccine in
tobacco, they also started the production of hepatitis B and heat-labile toxin B in potato,
Solanum tuberosum and potato plant (Rosales-Mendoza, 2020). These vaccines have an
indefensible advantage of over traditional conventional vaccines. Particularly in the developing
world, edible vaccine offers exciting possibilities of reducing the burden of diseases such as
hepatitis b and diarrhea, where storing and administering vaccine are often major problems
(Laere et al., 2016).
2.2 MECHANISM ACTION OF VACCINES PRODUCED FROM POTATO

Vaccines can be referred as the agents that trigger the immune system of the body in detecting
any pathogen or undesirable antigen in the system. There are many edible vaccines that are
synthesized in Solanum tuberosum or commonly called as potato (Saxena and Rawat, 2013).
Many human pathogens invade the body system at the surfaces of mucosal in which via
respiratory, gastrointestinal tracts and urogenital as the entry pathway to the human body.
Mucosal immunity is known as the first line of the defense mechanism of the body. Due to the
function of oral vaccine in producing mucosal immunity, antibody-mediated immune response
and cell-mediated immunological response, these vaccines have become the most effective
method as oral routes are considered as mucosal immunization’s efficient path. Moreover,
because of the thick outer wall of the potato cell, the antigen-containing plant vaccines do not get
hydrolyzed by gastric enzymes. The antigen-containing transgenic potato also functions by
bioencapsulation in which involves outer rigid cell wall that had been hydrolyzed before entering
the intestinal tracts. M cells in the intestinal lining that are located on the Payer’s patches and
gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) will then pick up the released antigens and transmit them
to macrophages and local lymphocyte populations. These will produce memory cells, local IgA
responses, IgE responses and serum IgG which then quickly balance the attack by the actual
infectious pathogens (Jan et al., 2016).
2.3 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF POTATO FOR VACCINE
There are a few advantages and disadvantages of potato in production of vaccine. For the
advantages, potato that contain edible vaccine is safe to eat or consume orally as the plant cannot
host many human pathogens, thus the vaccines inside the potato will not give harm to human.
Next, potatoes also contain vaccines that react to many types of diseases such as measles,
hepatitis B and diarrhea. This can be seen through studies by John Clements and his colleagues,
where there were 14 volunteers who ate the raw potatoes which produce toxin that secreted E.
coli. Then, 10 of 11 volunteers ate the transgenic potatoes and had a fourfold rise of serum
antibodies inside their body while six of 11 volunteers had a fourfold rise in intestinal antibodies
(Saxena and Rawat, 2013). Moreover, production of edible vaccines in potatoes is very eco-
friendly to environment. This is because they do not require any machines or expensive
equipment as the plants can be easily grown in soils that are rich with nutrients (Jan et al., 2016).
Meanwhile, for the disadvantages, potatoes need to be eaten raw as they are not very tolerant to
boiling and heating. This is because the cooking process will break down about 50% of proteins
in vaccine of the potatoes (Saxena and Rawat, 2013). After that, potatoes that contain vaccines
are prone to get microbial infestation. For instance, the potato will only last long if stored at 4°C,
otherwise it will become bad and no longer safe to consume. Lastly, some individuals will have
possibility in developing immune tolerance towards certain vaccine protein or peptide which
causing the potatoes have no effects to their immune system (Jan et al., 2016).
3.0 CONCLUSION
In a nutshell, vaccines serve a significant role in infection prevention and enabled humans
to be exposed to a wide range of infectious pathogens without becoming ill. Potato as edible
vaccine has the potential to significantly reduce antibiotic use and can play an important role in
an era where antibiotic resistance is becoming a serious issue. The discovery of an edible
vaccination is a huge breakthrough in the field of biotechnology, and its success demands
widespread acceptance and attention. Unlike regular vaccinations, production of potato as edible
vaccines does not require complex equipment or machines to manufacture (Kurup and Thomas,
2020). The biggest obstacle of edible vaccination is public acceptance, since some people believe
that genetically modified items are harmful to society and the environment. Because the
advantages of edible vaccines outweigh the disadvantages, comprehensive study and
development in this field is essential, and it has the potential to use in a new era of improved
control over infectious illnesses.
4.0 INFOGRAPHIC SUMMARY
5.0 REFERENCES
Jan, N., Shafi, F., Hameed, O., Muzaffar, K., Dar, S., Majid, I., & Nayik, G. (2016). An Overview on
Edible Vaccines and Immunization. Austin Journal of Nutrition and Food Sciences, 4(2), 1078.
Laere, E., Ling, A. P. K., Wong, Y. P., Koh, R. Y., Mohd Lila, M. A., & Hussein, S. (2016). Plant-based
vaccines: production and challenges. Journal of Botany
Saxena, J., & Rawat, S. (2013). Edible Vaccines. Advances in Biotechnology, 207–226.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-1554-7_12
Rosales-Mendoza, S., Márquez-Escobar, V. A., González-Ortega, O., Nieto-Gómez, R., & Arévalo-
Villalobos, J. I. (2020). What does plant-based vaccine technology offer to the fight against COVID-
19?. Vaccines, 8(2), 183.
Rybicki, E. P. (2014). Plant-based vaccines against viruses. Virology journal, 11, 1-20.
Takeyama, N., Kiyono, H., & Yuki, Y. (2015). Plant-based vaccines for animals and humans: recent
advances in technology and clinical trials. Therapeutic advances in vaccines, 3(5-6), 139-154.
Kurup, V. M., & Thomas, J. (2020). Edible Vaccines: Promises and Challenges. Molecular
biotechnology, 62(2), 79–90. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12033-019-00222-1

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FACULTY OF APPLIED SCIENCE

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONOURS) BIOLOGY

ANIS NAJIHAH BINTI IBRAHIM 2021103057 AS2014B1

NIK NOOR NABIHAH BINTI MOHD ARIS 2021125677 AS2014B1

2.0 BODY OF CONTENT

2.2 MECHANISM ACTION OF VACCINES PRODUCED FROM POTATO

2.3 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF POTATO FOR VACCINE

Rybicki, E. P. (2014). Plant-based vaccines against viruses. Virology journal, 11, 1-20.

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