Preface

Manufacturing pharmaceuticals cost-effectively is one of the items on the wish list of biochemists and biotechnologists as drug regulatory authority in the USA has approved large-scale production and clinical trials of drugs developed through diverse production routes, including viruses, animals, and plants. Several factors are taken into account while selecting a production system of recombinant proteins since different expression systems have their own merits and demerits. The cost of expressed recombinant proteins includes production, processing, and purification costs. Normally, the production of expressed proteins costs around 70%, whereas purification costs around 30% of the total cost. Molecular pharming refers to the production of recombinant pharmaceutical proteins using plant biotechnology. This volume covers an array of topics relevant to structure, function, regulation, and mechanisms of action, biochemical significance, and usage of proteins and peptides as biomarkers, therapeutics, and vaccines for animals and human beings. Further, this book highlights the current progress from three directions, including system biology – in silico characterization of proteins and peptides, molecular pharming for animals, and molecular pharming for humans.

The book, Frontiers in Molecular Pharming, consists of 13 chapters subdivided into three sections. The chapters in the book are strategically organized to allow easy reading. Section I (System Biology – in silico Characterization of Proteins and Peptides) begins with Chapter 1 in which Dr. Rahman and his colleagues very comprehensively highlight various bioinformatics tools for predicting epitopic regions and a variety of immunological techniques to monitor the immune response generated against selected epitopic regions for the development of vaccines and diagnostics. Dr. Tahir ul Qamar and his colleagues in Chapter 2 have discussed the recent progress in the emerging field of immunoinformatics and its role in vaccine development. Dr. Ali explains the computational toolbox and its use in determining protein stability and analysis to improve thermostability in Chapter 3. In Chapter 4, Dr. Chen and her colleagues suggest how an evolving approach to Pan-proteomics is complementing our understanding of the functional complexity of emerging and highly virulent pathogens and their resistance development against drugs. Further, in Chapter 5, Drs. Haider and Niazi briefly overview the computational methods to predict the biological roles of peptides and proteins for medical or industrial applications.

Section II (Molecular Pharming for Human Beings) consists of six chapters, i.e., Chapters 6 through 11. In Chapter 6, Dr. Khan and his team members explain comprehensively how diverse expression systems could be used to costeffectively develop recombinant pharmaceuticals and their application to control diseases in animals and human beings. Dr. Ahmad and his team provide a snapshot of different expression systems and argue that the plant-based expression system is highly commercially feasible not only for the production of high-value targets but also to address global challenges like COVID-19 in Chapter 7. In Chapter 8, Drs. Mangena and Mkhize explain the role of antibody cross-reactivity and specificity concerning basic principles, challenges, and detection for rapid and reliable assessment in Fusarium pathogens. Dr. Waheed and his team in Chapter 9 and Dr. Rashid and her team in Chapter10 have discussed how the requisition of plant-based medicine is increasing day-by-day with its perspective to human diseases, and several advantages owing to United Nations’ sustainable development goals (SDGs). Dr. Qasim and his colleagues in Chapter 11 explain the importance of proteins and peptides as biomarkers for the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases to improve the risk prediction at the population level. Further, the authors explore how new technologies and innovations can be applied to advance the science of vaccine-associated biomarkers.

Section III (Molecular Pharming for Animals) consists of two chapters. In Chapter 12, Dr. Aqib and his colleagues highlight the history and recent trends in veterinary pharmaceuticals and vaccines. They further discuss the nutraceutical potential of animal products as one of the fascinating areas of research with considerable anti-microbial, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, and neuroprotective functions. Dr. Khan and his team in Chapter 13 highlight the importance of plant-based gene expression systems that have been exploited as bioreactors for the cost-effective production of pharmaceuticals, predominantly for the expression and accumulation of antigenic proteins, to be used as vaccines for livestock and poultry. Further, they have discussed various types of vaccines keeping in view diseases like Infectious Bursal Disease (IBD), New Castle Disease (ND), and Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).

Molecular farming is progressively reaching the stage of being considered as an economical alternative to established systems for the production of pharmaceuticals. Thus, this volume serves as a treasured resource for students and professionals of molecular biology, biotechnology, medicinal chemistry, and organic chemistry.