Synthetic Artemisinin Produced From Genetically Modified Yeast Could Lead to Large-Scale Production of ACTs, Study Says

Genetically modified yeast cells can be used to produce a synthetic version of artemisinin, a method that could lead to the wide-scale manufacture of low-cost artemisinin-based combination therapies for the treatment of malaria, according to research published in the April 13 issue of the journal Nature, the Guardian reports (Sample, Guardian, 4/13). ACTs are derived from the plant Artemisia annua, but the plant is rare and the process of extracting the drug is expensive and long. Jay Keasling, a researcher at the University of California-Berkeley, and colleagues inserted A. annua plant genes into yeast cells, which then produced and secreted large quantities of artemisinic acid (Towie, Nature.com, 4/12). The researchers then were able to chemically synthesize the acid into artemisinin (Mason, Contra Costa Times, 4/12). The researchers hope by producing artemisinin on a large scale they can develop a treatment that costs about 25 cents. It currently costs about $2.40 for three days' worth of some ACTs, which is unaffordable for many of the 300 million to 500 million people -- primarily in Africa -- who contract malaria annually, according to the San Jose Mercury News. To help reduce the cost of the drug, UC-Berkeley has granted a royalty-free license to Amyris Biotechnologies, which Keasling co-founded, and the not-for-profit pharmaceutical company Institute for OneWorld Health. Both organizations partnered with the university on the project. If the method is successful, Amyris hopes to make profits through sales of the drug to U.S. consumers traveling to malaria-endemic countries (Johnson, San Jose Mercury News, 4/12). Keasling said it will take five to 10 years to develop the yeast to produce the acid on a large scale (Henderson, Times, 4/13). The compound produced must first be tested on animals and humans to determine its safety and effectiveness (McAlary, VOA News, 4/12). The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2004 provided a five-year grant of $43 million to support the project (Contra Costa Times, 4/12).