You may soon be able to grow your own Ozempic at home

Money may not grow on trees — but Ozempic soon might.

A team of enterprising University of Ottawa undergraduate students have unveiled a project that could revolutionize the pharmaceutical industry.

Dubbed Phytogene, the project employs the Nicotiana benthamiana plant to make GLP-1 receptor agonists — the class of drugs to which the popular diabetes-turned-weight loss medication Ozempic belongs.

By leveraging this plant-based production system — also known as biopharming — the team aims to provide a sustainable and accessible alternative to traditional pharmaceutical manufacturing methods, which are considered bad for the environment — as well as your wallet.

“Inspired by the recent Ozempic shortage, we built a proof-of-concept model system that expresses functional GLP-1 agonists in plants,” biotechnology and biomedical science major Victor Boddy, who is leading the project, said in a statement.

“We aim to create a future where people can reliably grow their own treatments at home, free from concerns about insurance, cost or availability.”

Driven by a surge in demand, Ozempic shortages have been ongoing worldwide since 2022, when the drug’s popularity as a weight-loss method became pervasive.

This raised concerns among health care professionals — not only because of the impact shortages might have on those who needed the medication the most, but also because of the health risks posed to the general public by counterfeit versions of the drugs.

Some users have even traveled thousands of miles to get their hands on a prescription.

In February, the FDA said that the semaglutide medicine shortage had been resolved.

If the Phytogene project fully bears fruit — it could potentially never happen again.

“Phytogene offers a unique, sustainable approach to biotechnology by providing an environmentally friendly solution to the critical crisis of medication access,” project co-leader Teagan Thomas said.

“We’re excited to further develop this concept into a commercially viable project with support from venture capitalists and scientific advisers.”

The team unveiled the project at the iGEM Grand Jamboree in Paris, where they competed against 430 international teams to win a gold medal.

While the prospect of being able to grow Ozempic at home is no doubt exciting, it’s important to note that the project is still in its testing phase. The plant-derived extracts have not undergone human trials.

“We are currently analyzing blood glucose and insulin levels to assess response,” Thomas said. “We also plan to conduct bioactivity assays to test the drug’s effectiveness on human cells.”