A common cancer drug was discovered in a Himalayan plant, and until now that plant was the only source of the drug. Now, a Stanford chemical engineer has identified the 10 drug-making enzymes and placed them into another plant that is easier to grow in the lab. This is the first step to being able to produce the drug in higher quantities and to manipulate the drug to make it safer and even more effective. The scientists hope to take this same approach with other drugs that must still be isolated from plants that are rare, endangered or hard to grow in the lab.
