CPs & Materials Science

[Anoxos]

http://news.yahoo.com/s....ryslope

 

[chloroplast]

Interesting.

Billions of years of evolution have produced some remarkable results--many may not have current applications (for human needs) but it's worth investigating those that have strong potential to be utilized.

 

[jimscott]

Quote[/b] (chloroplast @ Jan. 25 2006,5:30)]Interesting.

Billions of years of evolution have produced some remarkable results--many may not have current applications (for human needs) but it's worth investigating those that have strong potential to be utilized.

Could be worse... they could put you inside human cells, as someone recently suggested.  

TF Topic

 

[chloroplast]

Quote[/b] ]Could be worse... they could put you inside human cells, as someone recently suggested.

Funny!  

 

 

I can't begin to fathom the complexities associated with successfully accomplishing such a feat!  Assuming it is practical (i.e., would provide benefit with little or no harm to the subject), I would imagine one would first have to alter the chloroplast or cellular physiology so as to enable the choroplast to survive (i.e., sustain and replicate itself) in the mammalian cell .  Secondly, one would have to create biochemical pathways enabling the utilization/catabolism of the photosynthetically-derived glucose.  Thirdly, one would have to prevent the cell from expressing portions of the chloroplast's polypeptides on its membrane for the sequences would be recognized as non-self by immune cells which would then initiate an immune response against the chlorophyll-containing cells.  There's obviously many more factors that must be taken into consideration (and many more that are unforseeable) .

I must have missed that post.  Nice find, Jim!    

 

 

[jimscott]

Seriously speaking, I thought there was some sort of bio-engineering going on to enhance disease resistance in our vegetables by infusing animal DNA. I can't remember the specifics of it, but I'm sure that there is a mixing of tissue.