[DIYbio] Re: help me setup DIY-BIO home Lab to produce Recombinant Factor VIII

Sunil,

 

Calm down.  

 

Labs that make drugs for sale to people are regulated and licensed because it was quite horrible when they weren't.  

 

I have heard many people claim that Big Pharma has a vested interest in keeping people sick because it is more profitable for them.  I don't believe this any more than I think that the fire department wants you to have a fire hazard in your house or the animal shelter wants to you mistreat your dog.  I have seen more fraud in Little Pharma which skirts regulations than in Big Pharma which is checked and double-checked constantly.   Also, please keep in mind that "Big Pharma" is not one company.  It is a number of companies which are in very keen competition with one another.  If one of those companies found a cure for something, they would rush to get it on the market before one of the other companies did, in a flurry of lawyers and patents.

 

Also, there has been a *ton* of advancements in the last 30 years in biotechnology.  It's a wonderful time to be in this field because there are now discoveries and techniques coming out all the time.

 

Moving on:

 

If you would like to continue your project, I suggest again that you find out which methods you need to use, and what equipment you need to have and how much it will cost.   (I have also been emailing Sunil privately suggesting equipment and supplies for cell culture.)   Also look into how protein purification and how it is done.  It seems you're trying to do a complex project with human proteins and mammalian cell culture on the cheap, when your biggest problem is going to be contamination.

 

I also privately suggested to Sunil that rather than setting up a whole culture lab he may consider having the culture cloned by contract.  I know that would take the DIY out of DIYbio, but it doesn't seem that he is latching on to the DIY bio thing but may be more results-orientied, which is fine.

 

So, Sunil, what equipment and supplies will you need to conduct your project?   (You can start with the list I sent you).  What type of skills are needed (mammalian cell culture, protein purification, making and sterilizing media, etc.)