Collagen producing plants and methods of generating and using same
A method of producing collagen in a plant and plants producing collagen are provided. The method is effected by expressing in the plant at least one type of a collagen alpha chain in a manner enabling accumulation of the collagen alpha chain in a subcellular compartment devoid of endogenous P4H activity, thereby producing the collagen in the plant.
1. A method of producing collagen in a plant or an isolated plant cell comprising targeting to a vacuole of the plant or the isolated plant cell the collagen alpha 1 chain as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 3 and an exogenous prolyl-4-hydroxylase (P4H) so as to allow hydroxylation of the collagen alpha 1 chain by said exogenous P4H, thereby producing the collagen in the plant.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising expressing an exogenous polypeptide selected from the group consisting of Lysyl hydroxylase (LH), protease N and protease C—.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said exogenous P4H comprises a mammalian P4H.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plant is selected from the group consisting of Tobacco, Maize, Alfalfa, Rice, Potato, Soybean, Tomato, Wheat, Barley, Canola, Carrot and Cotton.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein said exogenous P4H is capable of specifically hydroxylating the Y position of Gly-X-Y triplets of said at least one type of said collagen chain.
6. The method of claim 3 , wherein said mammalian P4H comprises a human P4H.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plant is subjected to a stress condition.
8. The method of claim 7 , wherein said stress condition is selected from the group consisting of drought, salinity, injury, cold and spraying with stress inducing compounds.
9. A method of producing collagen, said method comprising:
(a) providing a plant system comprising:
a first genetically modified plant comprising in a vacuole thereof.
(i) the collagen alpha 1 chain as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 3; and
(ii) an exogenous P4H; and
a second genetically modified plant comprising in a vacuole thereof:
(i) the collagen alpha 2 chain as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 6; and
(ii) an exogenous P4H;
(b) crossing said first plant and said second plant; and
(c) selecting progeny expressing said collagen alpha 1 chain and said collagen alpha 2 chain thereby producing collagen.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein said exogenous P4H is capable of specifically hydroxylating the Y position of Gly-X-Y triplets of said collagen alpha 1 chain or collagen alpha 2 chain.
11. The method of claim 9 , wherein said exogenous P4H is human P4H.
12. A method of producing collagen comprising:
(a) providing the plant system comprising:
a first genetically modified plant comprising in a vacuole thereof:
(i) the collagen alpha 1 chain as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 3; and
(ii) the collagen alpha 2 chain as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 6; and
a second genetically modified plant comprising in a vacuole thereof an exogenous P4H; and
(b) crossing said first plant and said second plant and selecting progeny expressing the collagen alpha 1 chain, the collagen alpha 2 chain and said P4H thereby producing collagen.
13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the collagen alpha 1 chain is encoded by a sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 1.
14. The method of claim 1 , further comprising targeting to a vacuole of the plant or the isolated plant cell the collagen alpha 2 chain as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 6 so as to allow hydroxylation of the collagen alpha 2 chain by said exogenous P4H.
15. The method of claim 1 , further comprising isolating the collagen following the producing.