Synthesis of an artificial gene coding for thymosin alpha1 and its expression in Escherichia coli as a hybrid with human tumor necrosis factor]

Chemical-enzymatic synthesis and cloning in Escherichia coli of an artificial gene encoding the immunoactive peptide thymosin alpha 1 have been carried out. Recombinant plasmids were constructed which contain fusion genes coding for hybrids of human tumour necrosis factor (TNF) and thymosin alpha 1 as N- or C-terminal part of the hybrid protein. In the C-terminal hybrid protein, TNF and thymosin alpha 1 are linked through a methionine residue, thus allowing for thymosin alpha 1 to be cleaved off the rest of the hybrid protein with cyanogen bromide. In case of the N-terminal hybrid protein, the linker between the thymosin alpha 1 and TNF sequences is the acid-labile dipeptide Asp-Pro. Expression of the hybrid genes in E. coli and properties of the recombinant proteins were studied. The N-terminal hybrid protein was secreted into periplasmic space, in contrast with the C-terminal hybrid protein, which formed insoluble aggregates inside bacterial cells. Procedures for the isolation of both hybrid proteins were developed. The N-terminal hybrid protein displayed full biological activity in the cytotoxic assay on the mouse fibroblast L-929 whereas the C-terminal hybrid protein proved to be much less active. Treatment of the hybrid protein TNF-thymosin alpha 1 with cyanogen bromide lead to a mixture of two polypeptides, from which thymosin alpha 1 was purified to homogeneity by simple chromatographic procedures.     

Recombinant Thymosin α1

An artificial gene encoding thymosin ₁ was obtained by chemoenzymatic synthesis and cloned into Escherichia coli. An expressing recombinant plasmid containing the hybrid protein gene, which encodes amino acid sequences of thymosin ₁ and the Saccharomyces cerevisiae intein Sce VMA, was constructed. The expression of the hybrid protein from the resulting hybrid gene in E. coli, the properties of the resulting hybrid protein, and the conditions for its nonenzymatic cleavage to thymosin ₁ were studied.     

人胸腺素α1在大肠杆菌中的融合表达

利用基因工程表达的方法,在大肠杆菌中通过与GST蛋白融合的方式高效表达了胸腺素α1前体基因,随后经亲和层析和SP强阳离子树脂纯化相结合的方式,得到了胸腺素前体肽段31肽和N端未经乙酰化修饰的28肽。融合蛋白表达量达到菌体总蛋白的35%～40%,样品肽的产量也达到了约200mg/L（肽/发酵液）的产量。经质谱测定,分子量分别为3366和3066。BalB/C小鼠脾脏淋巴细胞体外测活表明,所构建的GSTTα1融合蛋白和纯化后的产物对于淋巴细胞具有比较明显的增殖作用,其中N端未经乙酰化的28肽产物与31肽产物活性相近,均对淋巴细胞具有明显的刺激增殖作用。     

Overexpression of soluble human thymosin alpha 1 in Escherichia coli

Synthesized gene of human thymosin alpha 1 (Tα1) was inserted into pET-28a, pET-9c,pThioHis B, pGEX-2T or pBV222 and then inductively expressed in strains of Escherichia coll. Among the five expression systems, the BL21/pET-28a system provides the highest expression level of fusion protein in a soluble form, which is up to 70% of total expressed bacterial proteins as visualized by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The resulting fusion protein purified through nickel affinity chromatography accounts for 2.53% of the wet bacterial pellet weight and reaches 94.5% purity by SDS-PAGE. These results indicate the potential of this expression system for high-throughput production of recombinant Tα1.     

Nuclear targeting of prothymosin alpha

Prothymosin alpha is a highly acidic protein which lacks an amino-terminal signal peptide, yet was once thought to be a precursor for thymosin alpha 1, a putative peptide hormone secreted by the thymus. Here, two lines of evidence are presented that strongly implicate prothymosin alpha as a nuclear protein: 1) in COS cells transfected with the human prothymosin alpha gene copious amounts of prothymosin alpha were present in sealed nuclei obtained by treating these cells with cytochalasin B and enucleating them centrifugally. 2) Constructs in which human prothymosin alpha nucleic acid sequences were fused in-frame either near the amino terminus of the beta-galactosidase gene in pCH110 or at the carboxyl terminus, when expressed in COS cells, resulted in nuclear localization of the fusion protein; indirect immunofluorescence in situ was used as the assay. The basic cluster of amino acids at the carboxyl terminus of prothymosin alpha, TKKQKT, has been identified as part of the nuclear targeting signal, whereas the basic cluster of amino acids situated within the thymosin alpha 1 sequence at the amino terminus failed to effect nuclear transport.     

化学切割重组融合蛋白制备人胸腺肽β_4

目的：在大肠杆菌中表达人胸腺肽β4（Tβ4）的融合蛋白,通过CDAP介导的化学切割将融合部分切除,获得人Tβ4。方法：分别以质粒pET-Tβ4和pET-L12为模板,扩增Tβ4和核糖体亚基蛋白L12的基因片段,再以这2段基因为模板进行重叠PCR,并在连接处引入一个半胱氨酸（Cys）密码子,将得到的融合蛋白Tβ4-Cys-L12基因片段与pET-22b载体连接,构建表达质粒,将其与N-末端乙酰转移酶质粒共转化至大肠杆菌BL21（DE3）并共表达,获得N端乙酰化修饰的融合蛋白Tβ4-Cys-L12;利用CDAP氰基化Cys的巯基,于pH10.0条件下在Cys残基N端完成切割,分离纯化获得Tβ4。结果：质谱分析目的产物相对分子质量为4962.70,与天然Tβ4一致,表明获得了Tβ4。结论：CDAP介导的化学法可以有效切割融合蛋白获得Tβ4,建立了一套Tβ4的生物制备方法。     

Isolation of mutant genes for human leukocyte alpha2-interferon by a method of localized mutagenesis

An efficient method to obtain the mutant genes for human leucocyte alpha 2-interferon (IFN) has been elaborated.The technique includes the following main stages: cloning of interferon gene in M13mp8 DNA; isolation of double-stranded hybrid DNA complex, containing IFN gene as a single-stranded fragment; selective modification of a single-stranded hybrid DNA by sodium bisulphite; the repair of hybrid DNA by DNA polymerase I from Escherichia coli, transformation of Escherichia coli JN103 cells by double-stranded circular DNA, containing the selectively modified gene IFN. The technique is based on the protection of bacteriophage M13 genome from mutagen induced damage by means of converting phage DNA into the double-stranded structure leaving the single-stranded fragment to be mutagenized prone to mutagen action. This is achieved by reannealing of single-stranded M13mpB DNA hydrolyzed by restriction endonuclease BamHI. The technique preserves the infectiousness of vector DNA under the conditions permitting modification of up to 10% cytosine residues in IFN gene. Every clone resulting from transformation of Escherichia coli by modified DNA carried mutations in IFN gene, identified by sequencing after Sanger.     

Molecular cloning of the penicillin G acylase gene from Arthrobacter viscosus

Penicillin G acylase was purified from the cultured filtrate of Arthrobacter viscosus 8895GU and was found to consist of two distinct subunits with apparent molecular weights of 24,000 (alpha) and 60,000 (beta). The partial N-terminal amino acid sequences of the alpha and beta subunits were determined with a protein gas phase sequencer, and a 29-base oligonucleotide corresponding to the partial amino acid sequence of the alpha subunit was synthesized. An Escherichia coli transformant having the penicillin G acylase gene was isolated from an A. viscosus gene library by hybridization with the 29-base probe. The resulting positive clone was further screened by the Serratia marcescens overlay technique. E. coli carrying a plasmid designated pHYM-1 was found to produce penicillin G acylase in the cells. This plasmid had an 8.0-kilobase pair DNA fragment inserted in the EcoRI site of pACYC184.     

Molecular cloning of the penicillin G acylase gene from Arthrobacter viscosus.

Penicillin G acylase was purified from the cultured filtrate of Arthrobacter viscosus 8895GU and was found to consist of two distinct subunits with apparent molecular weights of 24,000 (alpha) and 60,000 (beta). The partial N-terminal amino acid sequences of the alpha and beta subunits were determined with a protein gas phase sequencer, and a 29-base oligonucleotide corresponding to the partial amino acid sequence of the alpha subunit was synthesized. An Escherichia coli transformant having the penicillin G acylase gene was isolated from an A. viscosus gene library by hybridization with the 29-base probe. The resulting positive clone was further screened by the Serratia marcescens overlay technique. E. coli carrying a plasmid designated pHYM-1 was found to produce penicillin G acylase in the cells. This plasmid had an 8.0-kilobase pair DNA fragment inserted in the EcoRI site of pACYC184.     

Recombinant oxyntomodulin

An artificial gene encoding oxyntomodulin was obtained using chemical and enzymatic methods and cloned into Escherichia coli. A recombinant plasmid was constructed containing a hybrid oxyntomodulin gene and Ssp dnaB intein from Synechocystis sp. The expression of the resulting hybrid gene in E. coli, its properties, and the conditions of its autocatalytic cleavage to oxyntomodulin were studied.     

Biotechnological production of acetylated thymosin beta4

Thymosin beta4 (43 aa) is a highly conserved acidic peptide which regulates actin polymerization in mammalian cells by sequestering globular actin. Thymosin beta4 is undergoing clinical trials as a drug for the treatment of venous stasis ulcers, corneal wounds and injuries, as well as acute myocardial infarction. Currently, thymosin beta4 is produced with solid-phase chemical synthesis. Biotechnological synthesis of this peptide presents difficulties because N-terminal amino acid residue of thymosin beta4 is acetylated. In this study we propose a method for producing the recombinant precursor of thymosin beta4 and its subsequent targeted chemical acetylation. Desacetylthymosin beta4 was synthesized as a part of a hybrid protein with thioredoxin and a specific TEV (tobacco etch virus) protease cleavage site. The following scheme was developed for the purification of desacetylthymosin beta4: (i) the biosynthesis of a soluble hybrid protein (HP) in Escherichia coli; (ii) isolation of the HP by ion exchange chromatography; (iii) cleavage of the HP with TEVprotease; (iv) purification of desacetylthymosin beta4 by ultra-filtration. N-terminal acetylation of desacetylthymosin beta4 was performed with acetic anhydride under acidic conditions (pH 3). The reaction yield was 55%. Thymosin beta4 was then purified by reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography. The proposed synthetic approach to recombinant thymosin beta4 is suitable for scale-up and can provide for the medical use of highly purified preparation with a yield of 20 mg from 1 L of culture.     

Construction of an infectious pseudorabies virus recombinant expressing a glycoprotein gIII-β-galactosidase fusion protein

An infectious herpesvirus mutant has been constructed in which a major structural envelope glycoprotein gene was replaced by a hybrid gene encoding a novel fusion protein consisting of the N-terminus of the viral glycoprotein joined to Escherichia coli β-galactosidase (ßGal). Specifically, we fused DNA encoding the first 157 amino acids of the structural glycoprotein gIII from pseudorabies virus strain Becker to the E. coli lacZ gene in a bacterial expression vector. The resulting hybrid gene was then used to replace the wild-type gIII gene in the virus by cotransfection of plasmid and viral DNA. The desired viral recombinants were identified by their inability to react with specific monoclonal antibodies that recognized only wild-type gIII protein. One such mutant virus, PRV-Z1, was chosen for further analysis. PRV-Z1 expressed a glycosylated gIII-ßGal fusion protein after infection of PK15 cells. The fusion protein has no demonstrable ßGal activity and, although glycosylated, remains sensitive to the enzyme endo-β-N-acetylglucosaminidase H, unlike the mature gIII gene product, indicating that the fusion protein was incompletely processed.     

抗人AFP单链抗体与藻胆蛋白融合蛋白的构建、表达与活性分析

目的:构建多基因表达载体,在大肠杆菌中同时表达AFP单链抗体(scFv)和蓝藻别藻蓝蛋白α亚基脱辅基蛋白(apcA)组成的融合蛋白(scFv-apcA)、藻胆蛋白裂合酶(cpcS)及藻红蛋白生物合成酶(Ho1和pebS),获得共价结合藻红胆素的融合蛋白(scFv-apcA-PEB)。方法:利用融合PCR将scFv和apcA基因连接起来,形成scFv-apcA融合基因,并将该融合基因与cpcS克隆到表达载体pCDFDuet-1中;将Ho1和pebS基因克隆到表达载体pRSFDuet-1中。将两种载体共转化到大肠杆菌中,IPTG诱导重组蛋白表达,经亲和层析获得重组蛋白,通过光谱学分析和抗体竞争性抑制法,测定重组蛋白的生物学活性。结果:成功表达融合蛋白scFv-apcA-PEB,分子质量约为45kDa,与理论值相符,其最大吸收峰为549.5nm,最大荧光发射峰为560nm,竞争抑制ELISA法初步鉴定活性,竞争抑制率达到48%。结论:利用大肠杆菌表达系统,获得了同时具有荧光特性和免疫学活性的重组蛋白。     

小肽多拷贝基因表达载体的构建及其高效表达(英文)

介绍一种快速、高效构建小肽多拷贝基因表达载体的策略 ,并构建了相应的表达载体pETE coT .用人工合成的编码 2 8个氨基酸残基的胸腺素α1基因为模型 ,采用限制酶EcoT14I识别序列CCAAGG为小肽基因两末端序列 ,利用其酶切后可产生非镜相对称粘性末端 ,一次连接反应就构建出一系列不同基因拷贝数的表达载体 ;在小肽基因两端分别引进编码FactorXa和羟胺蛋白切割位点的序列 ,表达出的融合蛋白可被FactorXa和羟胺剪切出不残留任何外源氨基酸的小肽 .不同拷贝数的小肽融合蛋白在大肠杆菌BL2 1(DE3)中均获得高效表达 .     

Molecular analysis of RNA polymerase alpha subunit gene from Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2).

The rpoA gene, encoding the alpha subunit of RNA polymerase, was cloned from Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2). It is preceded by rpsK and followed by rplQ, encoding ribosomal proteins S11 and L17, respectively, similar to the gene order in Bacillus subtilis. The rpoA gene specifies a protein of 339 amino acids with deduced molecular mass of 36,510 Da, exhibiting 64.3 and 70.7% similarity over its entire length to Escherichia coli and B. subtilis alpha subunits, respectively. Using T7 expression system, we overexpressed the S. coelicolor alpha protein in E. coli. A small fraction of this protein was found to be assembled into E. coli RNA polymerase. Antibody against S. coelicolor alpha protein crossreacted with that of B. subtilis more than with the E. coli alpha subunit. The ability of recombinant alpha protein to assemble beta and beta' subunits into core enzyme in vitro was examined by measuring the core enzyme activity. Maximal reconstitution was obtained at alpha2:beta+beta' ratio of 1:2.3, indicating that the recombinant alpha protein is fully functional for subunit assembly. Similar results were also obtained for natural alpha protein. Limited proteolysis with endoproteinase Glu-C revealed that S. coelicolor alpha contains a tightly folded N-terminal domain and the C-terminal region is more protease-sensitive than that of E. coli alpha.     

A lipopeptide-encoding sequence upstream from the IysA gene of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

An open reading frame (ORF) of 141 bp was observed upstream from the Pseudomonas aeruginosa lysA gene. The translation product of this ORF contains a signal peptide with a lipoprotein box, Ile-Ala-Ala-Cys, at the predicted signal peptidase cleavage site. The Escherichia coli phoA gene without its signal sequence was fused in frame to this ORF in a broad host-range plasmid. The resulting construct expressed a hybrid protein exhibiting alkaline phosphatase activity in phoA mutants of both E. coli and P. aeruginosa. This indicates that the ORF encodes a peptide, part of which acts as an export signal. The hybrid peptide was identified by immunoblotting with alkaline phosphatase antiserum. The accumulation of a precursor form was observed when P. aeruginosa cells carrying this gene fusion on a plasmid were treated with globomycin. Moreover, the mature form could be labelled with 2-[3H]-glycerol, indicating that lipidic residues may be linked to the hybrid protein. Taken together, these results strongly suggest that the ORF encodes a lipopeptide. We propose that the gene is called IppL.     

Directed evolution of operon of trehalose-6-phosphate synthase/phosphatase from Escherichia coli

Trehalose is a nonspecific protective agent for biomacromolecules. Trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (OtsA)/phosphatase (OtsB), which is encoded by the gene operon otsBA located at -42 of the Escherichia coli genome, is the main enzyme system that catalyzes the synthesis of trehalose in E. coli. We cloned the operon and modified it by directed evolution. Unlike in the previously reported work, we modified the whole operon and screened the positive mutant simultaneously. Thus we believe that the gene complex solves the negative effects between two enzymes if one of them diversifies its structure or functions and finds the form most suitable for trehalose synthesis. It thus mimics the natural process, in which the functional improvement of organisms is related to alterations in coordinated enzymes. The evolution procedure was carried out in a sequence of error-prone PCR, shuffling PCR, and then strict screening of the mutants. After screening of a library of more than 4000 colonies, about 15 positive colonies were analyzed, resulting in a higher concentration of trehalose than control. One of them, E. coli TS7, shows 12.3-fold higher trehalose synthesis ability than E. coli DH5alpha. In contrast, we introduced the cDNA sequence of the tps1 gene from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which has 54% identity with the gene otsA, as one of the templates in shuffling PCR. By hybrid evolution and screening, we obtained 10 positive colonies with higher concentrations of trehalose than control. E. coli TS22 appears to have 5.3-fold higher trehalose synthesis ability than E. coli DH5alpha and 1.6-fold more than E. coli DEF3(pOTS11). This result demonstrated that coevolution and hybrid evolution, as powerful protocols in protein engineering, are effective in modifying enzyme. It indicates that repeating the process of genomic evolution in nature is feasible.     

Appearance of thymosin alpha 1 in supernatants of monocytes incubated with prothymosin alpha.

Prothymosin alpha, a polypeptide of 109 to 111 amino acid residues, contains the entire thymosin alpha 1 sequence (residues 1-28) at its amino terminal. Human peripheral blood monocytes incubated with prothymosin alpha release thymosin alpha 1 in the culture supernatants. In addition total RNA is found to increase. The production of thymosin alpha 1 involves de novo protein synthesis as shown by the kinetics of this release and its inhibition by actinomycin D and cycloheximide. Thymosin alpha 1 release, possibly in association with HLA-DR, stimulates the proliferation of the T cell population.