Pharmaceuticals from Crab Shells Fungi with additional foreign
genes have been created at the Vienna University of Technology.
They can now turn chitin into pharmaceuticals. Usually, mould
fungi are nothing to cheer about – but now they can be used as
“chemical factories”. Scientists at the Vienna University of
Technology have succeeded in introducing bacterial genes into
the fungus Trichoderma, so that the fungus can now produce
important chemicals for the pharmaceutical industry. The raw
material used by the fungus is abundant - it is chitin, which
makes up the shells of crustaceans. Fifty Times More Expensive
than Gold Viral Infections are usually treated with antiviral
drugs, which are often derived from N-Acetylneuraminic acid (or
NANA, for short). NANA, which can be obtained form natural
sources or synthesized, is fifty times more valuable than gold -
it is sold for around 2000 Euros per gram. A research team at
Vienna UT, led by biotechnologist Astrid Mach-Aigner, has now
found a new, eco-friendly way