Editorial: The utilization of plants in vaccine research

In the framework of active immunization, plants provide a valuable platform that can serve as bio-factory for producing virus-like particles (VLPs) or subunit vaccines and they can also facilitate the direct delivery of these molecules through oral administration. Leveraging plants in vaccine development presents numerous benefits, as they enable the cost-effective production of substantial quantities of target antigens. Additionally, the robust cell walls of these hosts provide protection against proteases in the gastrointestinal tract, rendering plants advantageous for implementing oral vaccination strategies. Plant-derived antigens are safer compared to methods using mammalian cells/tissues which may contain viruses or prions. Additionally, genetic engineering of plants is relatively easy, and they possess the machinery for the post-translational modification of proteins.