Recombinant-DNA-derived bovine growth hormone from Escherichia coli. 2. Biochemical, biophysical, immunological and biological comparison with the pituitary hormone

Folding and Purification of Insoluble (Inclusion Body) Proteins from Escherichia coli

Heterologous expression of recombinant proteins in E. coli often results in the formation of insoluble and inactive protein aggregates, commonly referred to as inclusion bodies. To obtain the native (i.e., correctly folded) and hence active form of the protein from such aggregates, four steps are usually followed: (1) the cells are lysed, (2) the cell wall and outer membrane components are removed, (3) the aggregates are solubilized (or extracted) with strong protein denaturants, and (4) the solubilized, denatured proteins are folded with concomitant oxidation of reduced cysteine residues into the correct disulfide bonds to obtain the native protein. This unit features three different approaches to the final step of protein folding and purification. In the first, guanidine·HCl is used as the denaturant, after which the solubilized protein is folded (before purification) in an "oxido-shuffling" buffer system to increase the rate of protein oxidation. In the second, acetic acid is used to solubilize the protein, which is then partially purified by gel filtration before folding; the protein is then folded and oxidized by simple dialysis against water. Thirdly, folding and purification of a fusion protein using metal-chelate affinity chromatography are described.

Production of recombinant mink growth hormone in E. coli

Escherichia coli cells expressing mink (Mustela vison) growth hormone were grown in a batch fermentation process. The expression level was estimated to be 27% of the total cellular protein after 3 h of induction with 1 mM isopropyl beta-D-thiogalactoside (IPTG). If the expression of mink growth hormone (mGH) was induced with 0.2 mM IPTG, the concentration of target protein was slightly lower and was found to be 23% at the same time after induction. mGH expressed as inclusion bodies was solubilized in 8 M urea and renatured by dilution protocol at a protein concentration of 1.4-2.1 mg/ml in the presence of glutathione pair in a final concentration of 11.3 mM. [GSH]/[GSSG] ratio equal to 2/1 was used. Two-step purification process comprising of ion-exchange chromatography on Q-Sepharose and hydrophobic chromatography on Phenyl-Sepharose was developed. Some 25-30 mg of highly purified and biologically active mGH was obtained from 4 g of biomass. The method presented in this study allows producing large quantities of mGH and considering initiation of scientific investigation on mGH effect on mink in vivo and availability in fur industry.

Production of recombinant buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) and goat (Capra hircus) growth hormones from genetically modified E. coli strains

The growth hormone cDNAs of Indian reverine buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) and beetal goat (Capra hircus) were cloned in Escherichia coli through RT-PCR technique. Nucleotide sequencing revealed several silent mutations in both cDNAs and only one amino acid change in the case of goat when compared to reported bovine (Bos taurus) sequence. The high level expression of both the polypeptide hormones was achieved in E. coli (> or =30% of soluble intracellular proteins) through the construction of two-cistronic gene expression system. The solubilisation of recombinant growth hormones from inclusion bodies and subsequent oxidation to correctly folded monomeric form was also carried out. A combination of reverse-phase HPLC and non-reducing SDS-PAGE was successfully applied to distinguish between reduced and oxidised forms of growth hormones. A moderate yield ( approximately 40% of starting material, with potential for upscaling), two-step purification process comprising of hydrophobic interaction and ion-exchange chromatographies was developed. The process eliminates the need for costly, laborious and time-consuming steps of ultrafiltration and dialysis, as reported earlier for the purification of many recombinant animal growth hormones. The biophysical, biochemical and functional analyses of purified refolded polypeptides showed that the hormones produced in this study were identical to natural pituitary bovine growth hormone.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption mass spectrometry for the detection of recombinant bovine growth hormone in sustained-release form

We employed matrix-assisted laser desorption mass spectrometry (LD-MS) to detect recombinant bovine growth hormone (r-bGH) in sustained-release preparations. After preliminary extraction in phosphate buffer, LD-MS provided a precise determination of the molecular mass (M(r)) of the r-bGH contained in 38 sustained-release preparations. The hormone was characterised using enzyme immunoassay, immunoblotting and amino acid sequencing. Rapid detection is essential for analysing large numbers of samples, and for monitoring the use of r-bGH in zootechnical productions and its administration as a "high-tech" drug for therapeutic purposes.

Bovine somatotropin: review of an emerging animal technology

One of the first potential biotechnology products for animal production is bST. Research in the technology of bST has involved scientists and support from federal agencies, universities, and private industry. As a consequence of this extensive cooperation, more than 1000 bST studies have been conducted, which involved over 20,000 dairy cows, and results have been confirmed by scientists throughout the world. This quantity of published research is unprecedented for a new technology and greater than most dairy technologies in use. In contrast to steroids, bST is a protein hormone. Milk yield and persistency responses to bST have been observed for all dairy breeds examined. Quality of management is the major factor affecting magnitude of milk response to bST. The mechanism of action of bST involves a series of orchestrated changes in the metabolism of body tissues so that more nutrients can be used for milk synthesis. It is these coordinated changes that allow the animal to achieve an increased milk yield while remaining normal and healthy. Bioenergetic studies demonstrated that bST-supplemented animals are not stressed. Similarly, there are no adverse health effects from bST even under poor management conditions. Composition of milk (fat, protein, lactose, cholesterol, minerals, and vitamins) is not substantially altered when bST is used and does not differ in manufacturing characteristics. Public perception is of paramount importance if bST or any new technology is to be effectively implemented. New technology must be understood and perceived as safe and beneficial both by farmers, who would utilize it, and consumers, who would purchase the dairy products. With bST use, a unit of milk is produced with less feed and protein supplement and with a reduction in animal excreta (manure, urine, and methane). Nationally, the use of bST simply reinforces, but does not fundamentally change, dairy industry trends of increased milk yield per cow, reduced number of cows, and declining dairy farm numbers. For individual farms, bST technology is size-neutral. However, poorly managed farms where animals are stressed, underfed, or sick are at an economic disadvantage because they will achieve negligible milk response to bST.

Effect of high doses of a sustained-release bovine somatotropin on antibody formation in dairy cows

Eighty-two lactating Holstein cows received either one, three, or five concurrent, intramuscular injections of a unit dose (.6 g) of zinc methionyl bST (some-tribove) or five doses of the vehicle. Injections were administered at 14-d intervals from 60 d postpartum until the end of lactation or necropsy. Thirty-eight cows continued on the same treatment for a 2nd yr. Blood bST antibodies developed within the first 7 wk of treatment, and the number of cows with anti-bST binding generally declined with time. Thirteen out of 59 cows receiving bST developed binding activity > 25% (positives) during the 1st yr. At the .6-g dose level, no binding was detected after wk 15. Seven of the 13 positive cows were among the group randomly selected to continue on study during yr 2. In the 2nd yr, only 2 out of 24 bST-treated cows were positive. Binding activity was associated with the IgG fraction in serum. Binding capacities of antibodies ranged from .625 to 3.04 mg of bST/L, and affinities ranged from 1.14 x 10(8) to 3.14 x 10(8) L/mol. Cows considered to be clinically positive had performance similar to those of their herdmates having binding < 25%. No evidence of a pathologic effect of antibodies existed in treated cows, their calves, or fetuses. The presence of anti-bST antibodies did not affect milk production of the cow or growth of the calves conceived during bST treatment.

Secretion of Active Bovine Somatotropin in Escherichia coli

We have expressed a chimeric protein, comprising the LamB secretion signal sequence fused to mature bovine somatotropin (bST), in Escherichia coli. Plasmid constructs with the recA promoter showed significant protein accumulation prior to induction and cell lysis occurred after induction. In contrast, the lacUV5 promoter was tightly regulated. With the lacUV5 promoter, temperature and inducer concentration had significant effects on the total amount of recombinant protein produced and the fraction processed to mature bST. Quantitation of bST from shake flask cultures showed that 1-2 micrograms/ml/OD550 could be released from the periplasm by osmotic shock. N-terminal sequence analysis of the purified protein indicated that the majority of the secreted bST was correctly processed. The bST present in the osmotic shock fraction was judged to be correctly folded by comigration with oxidized methionyl-bST standard on a non-reducing polyacrylamide gel and activity in a bovine liver radioreceptor assay. These results provide a rapid method to produce bST for use in structure-function studies.

Formation of isoaspartate 99 in bovine and porcine somatotropins

Asparagine 99 in bovine (BST) and porcine somatotropins (PST) was converted to an isoaspartate residue during incubation at neutral or alkaline pH. Isoaspartate 99 BST or isoaspartate 99 PST was resolved from the normal somatotropin by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The altered peptide of residues 96-108 which contains isoaspartate 99 was detected by tryptic peptide mapping of the modified BST or PST. Amino acid sequencing, amino acid analysis, mass spectrometry, and co-elution with a chemically synthesized peptide containing isoaspartate 99 were used to demonstrate the existence of isoaspartate in the modified peptides. Peptide bond cleavage between Asn 99 and Ser 100 also occurred during incubation of BST and PST at neutral or alkaline pH. This chemically cleaved product was resolved on reversed-phase HPLC from both the isoaspartate 99 and normal somatotropin molecules.

Recombinant-DNA-derived bovine growth hormone from Escherichia coli. 1. Demonstration that the hormone is expressed in reduced form, and isolation of the hormone in oxidized, native form

The isolation of bacterially synthesized, recombinant-DNA-derived, bovine growth hormone (r-bGH) with native structure is described. The r-bGH is found in insoluble form, in a pellet fraction, after cell breakage and centrifugation. Cell envelope components (protein, lipid, endotoxin) and nucleic acids are selectively removed from the pellet fraction by an EDTA/lysozyme/deoxycholate extraction. We demonstrate that the r-bGH is largely reduced until solubilized using 6 M guanidine/HCl. Air oxidation is then carried out, in the presence of the guanidine/HCl. The oxidation results in a mixture of about one-third disulfide-linked oligomers and two-thirds oxidized monomer. The latter may include some incorrectly oxidized material, but appears to be mostly correctly oxidized. The oxidized monomer is isolated by gel filtration in the presence of guanidine/HCl. Subsequent guanidine/HCl removal leads to refolded, oxidized r-bGH. All steps in the procedure, in particular the oxidation and refolding steps, can be carried out at relatively high protein concentrations.