Recombinant Proteins Department

The idea of recombinant DNA was first put forward by Peter Lobban, Stanford University graduate student, in 1972. Insulin was the first recombinant protein with clinical practice produced by Genetech Inc .in 1983. Afterwards, therapeutic protein hormones (such as growth hormone, cytokines, and antibodies used for cancer treatment in different hosts) were gradually produced and entered the pharmaceutical market. Although the production of proteins through recombinant technologies has brought benefits to medicine and has proven an effective means of providing commercial opportunities, the commercial-scale production of proteins requires huge investment and long timeline.  Moreover, recombinant proteins, considered as strategic products, are extremely expensive. Complicated technology and difference in production and purification process of recombinant proteins in turn have led to the emergence of challenges and an approach for organizing the R&D department in each manufacturing company. Also, in addition to the proteins available in markets commercially, new therapeutic targets identified in cancer day to day result in conducting research studies to obtain recombinant proteins. As a result, this field remains a very active area of research and needs a high level of concentration and intellectual production. Since 2008, Department of Recombinant Proteins has initiated its activities and succeeded in providing an appropriate platform for the process of designing and producing recombinant proteins, in particular, recombinant antibodies.

Activity Axes

• To create and develop infrastructures and laboratories required for biotechnology, technology transfer and optimization purposes
• To research and develop the design and production of recombinant proteins including recombinant antibodies in research, diagnosis and treatment of cancer
• To conduct student-employee projects in any field of design and production of recombinant antibodies at laboratory scale
• To expand productive activities, at scales larger than laboratory scale, in the form of knowledge-based companies and to cooperate with other manufacturing  companies
• To educate professionals in the field of biotechnology
• To conduct research projects on recombinant protein production in long- and short- term phases
• To estimate biotechnology needs of the state and to meet the demands through the processes of designing and planning