When the toxin from MC-LR was added to the plant's surrounding hypotonic growth medium, the antibody bound to the toxin, rendering it harmless.
This is the first example of a transgenic plant expressing an antibody that remediates an environmental toxin, but according to Drake, more plants like these will be developed in the future to address different environmental problems.
According to Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of the FASEB Journal, "Tobacco is perhaps one of the most cultivated non-food crop in human history, and for centuries it has hurt human health. Now, with smart genetic tweaking, tobacco may prove more valuable in the field than in the pipe."
Source-ANI
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