New way of viewing cells could lead to easier routes for drug manufacture

Research by a Michigan State University chemist could eventually lead to a quicker and easier way of developing **protein-based drugs** which are key to treating a number of diseases, including **cancer**, **diabetes** and **hepatitis**. Proteins used in drug manufacture and research often are made within genetically modified **Escherichia coli**, a one-cell bacteria. That protein tends to collect into what scientists call inclusion bodies. Those hard-to-separate clumps render up to 95 percent of the protein unusable, according to associate chemistry professor David P. Weliky. "Michigan State University":[ http://news.msu.edu/story/5762/]

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