Currently, the only treatment for diseases caused by the lack of an enzyme such as Lysosomal Storage Diseases, is enzyme replacement therapy. This involves the injection of recombinantly produced enzymes to fix the deficiency; however, these are currently only produced in chicken eggs which presents an issue with immunogenicity. Those with an allergy have few alternatives but the development of a plant-based expression system would solve this issue. To begin to develop a plant-based expression system, we need to engineer a mammalian glycosylation system within a plant. Glycosylation plays a key role in enzyme function and would need to be modified to accommodate a human enzyme. To do this, you need to look at four specific mammalian enzymes within the glycosylation pathway and try to express them within a tobacco plant. This specific study looked at the human enzyme galactosyltransferase 4 (GnTIV) and aimed to understand its localisation to organelles within the plant cell called the Golgi bodies. Using lab-based techniques and microscopy, I was able to localise and image GnTIV within the Golgi bodies and see whether it localised with the correct pattern. Preliminary findings have found that the expression of GnTIV to the Golgi apparatus was successful. This could mean a big step in engineering plant glycosylation and could help when looking at the localisation of three other mammalian enzymes and, eventually, an entire enzyme in the tobacco plant.
Permanent link to this resource: https://doi.org/10.24384/bew0-1w80
Farley, Emily
Faculty of Health and Life SciencesDepartment of Biological and Medical Sciences
Year: 2024
© Farley, Emily