Nicotiana benthamiana has been used as a
model organism in plant research. For example, the leaves are rather frail and can be injured in experiments to study
ethylene synthesis. Ethylene is a plant hormone which is secreted, among other situations, after injuries. Using
gas chromatography, the quantity of ethylene emitted can be measured. Due to the large number of plant pathogens able to infect it,
N. benthamiana is widely used in the field of plant
virology. It is also an excellent target plant for
agroinfiltration.
Nicotiana benthamiana has a number of wild strains across Australia, and the laboratory strain is an
extremophile originating from a population that has retained a
loss-of-function mutation in
Rdr1 (
RNA-dependent RNA polymerase 1), rendering it hypersusceptible to viruses.
Biotechnology Nicotiana benthamiana is also a common plant used for
"pharming" of
monoclonal antibodies and other
recombinant proteins; for example, the drug
ZMapp was produced using these plants.
COVID-19 vaccine development The
Quebec City-based biotechnology company,
Medicago Inc., used
N. benthamiana as a "factory" to produce
virus-like particles over short incubation periods (days) and in high volume, enabling rapid manufacturing capability for a potential
COVID-19 vaccine. In February 2022,
Health Canada authorised use of the COVID-19 vaccine called
CoVLP (brand name
Covifenz) developed from
N. benthamiana for preventing infection in adults 18 to 64 years old. ==References==