Insulin
Insulin is a hormone that is produced in the pancreas which regulates the amount of glucose sugar found in the blood. Medical patients whose body's have the inability to produce enough insulin receive insulin injections and pumps. In the past, this insulin was retrieved from the stomachs of animals; people developed allergies to it and it was very costly. For these reasons, scientists have begun using genetic modification as a cheaper way to produce insulin that patients can tolerate.
Genetically engineered insulin is produced by a bacterium within a fermentation vessel; this fermentation vessel provides the bacterium with all the nutrients necessary for growth. Then, an enzyme is used to remove part of the plasmid in order to make room available for
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the insulin producing gene. This gene is then deposited into the plasmid, and the modified plasmid is put back into the bacterium. Finally, the bacterium can produce the needed insulin and divide into other bacteria that can do the same.
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