INSULIN grown in plants has been injected into people for the first time. The hope is that plants will provide a cheaper source of insulin for people with diabetes.
Sembiosys Genetics, a Canadian company based in Calgary, Alberta, inserted human insulin genes into safflowers, causing them to make a compound called pro-insulin. Enzymes then converted this into a type of insulin called SBS-1000.
Previous tests indicated that SBS-1000 is identical to human insulin, so last month Sembiosys compared its effects with insulin from other sources in healthy volunteers. The company plans to release the results later this year.
Most insulin…
