VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has announced that it is to coordinate the European Union's Smartcell project.
The four-year project focuses on developing methods for production of pharmaceutical compounds using plant cells as a production host in an effective and controlled manner.
The Smartcell project will focus on terpene compounds, which are valuable for the pharmaceutical industry.
These compounds are used in the treatment of cancer and malaria.
The expertise and technology created during the project can be applied to a considerable extent in developing the biotechnological production of other compound groups in plants and plant cells.
The Smartcell project brings together research partners from 14 European research institutes and universities as well as three small and medium-size and two major industrial enterprises.
In addition to VTT, the project participants include VIB (Belgium), Leiden University (the Netherlands), Lleida University (Spain) and Fraunhofer IME Aachen, (Germany).
The project's total budget is EUR8.5m, of which the EU's contribution is EUR6m.
The contractual negotiations will soon be concluded, and the project will start in January 2009.
The methods based on plant biotechnology are an alternative to chemical synthesis.
By controlling the cell metabolism of a 'green factory', for example, a living plant cell, it is possible to affect the production of desired high-value compounds.
Plants generate valuable secondary metabolic compounds, which can be used as pharmaceuticals.
Most of these compounds are so complex that their chemical synthesis is not economically feasible.
This is why biotechnology opens up a whole new avenue of possibilities.
