Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Research Paper
  • Published:

High–Level Expression, Efficient Secretion and Folding of Human Growth Hormone in Escherichia coli

Abstract

We have constructed a secretion vector containing genes that code for the Escherichia coli ompA signal peptide and human growth hormone (hGH). The recombinant fusion protein was expressed in E. coli cells harboring the vector and the correctly processed hGH was secreted into the E. coli periplasm, yielding 10–15 μg hGH/A600 cells in the periplasm. Purified hGH was shown to have the correct amino terminus, and also the correct disulfide bonds and the proper secondary structure. The results indicate that the E. coli periplasm can provide an environment to facilitate efficient disulfide bond formation and proper folding of hGH. The purification and isolation of the recombinant protein are greatly simplified and the processes needed to refold recombinant proteins derived from the E. coli cytoplasm are eliminated.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Schoner, R.G., Ellis, L.F., and Schoner, B.E. 1985. Isolation and purification of protein granules from Escherichia coli cells overproducing bovine growth hormone. Bio/Technology 3:151–154.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Glasbrenner, K. 1986. Technology spurt resolves growth hormone problem, ends shortage. JAMA 255:581–587.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Tokunaga, M., Loranger, J.M., Wolfe, P.B., and Wu, H.C. 1982. Prolipoprotein signal peptidase in Escherichia coli is distinct from M13 procoat protein signal peptidase. J. Biol. Chem. 257:9922–9925.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Wolfe, P.B., Silver, P., and Wickner, W. 1982. The isolation of homogeneous leader peptidase from a strain of Escherichia coli which overproduces the enzyme. J. Biol. Chem. 257:7898–7902.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Ghrayeb, J., Kimura, H., Takahara, M., Hsiung, H., Msaui, Y., and Inouye, M.J. 1984. Secretion cloning vectors in Escherichia coli. The EMBO J. 3:2437–2442.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Takahara, M., Hibler, D.W., Barr, P.J., Gerlt, J.A., and Inouye, M. 1985. The ompA signal peptide directed secretion of staphylococcal nuclease A by Escherichia coli. J. Biol. Chem. 260:2670–2674.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Gray, G.L., Baldridge, J.S., McKeown, K.S., Heyneker, H.L., and Chang, C.N. 1985. Periplasmic production of correctly processed human growth hormone in Escherichia coli: natural and bacterial signal sequences are interchangeable. Gene 39:247–254.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Matteucci, M., and Lipetsky, H. 1986. Alkaline phosphatase fusion: a tag to identify mutations that result in increased expression of secreted human growth hormone from E. coli. Bio/Technology 4:51–55.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Oka, T., Sakamoto, S., Miyoshi, K., Fuwa, T., Yoda, K., Yamasaki, M., Tamura, G., and Miyake, T. 1985. Synthesis and secretion of human epidermal growth factor by Escherichia coli. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 82:7212–7216.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Koshland, D., and Botstein, D. 1980. Secretion of beta-lactamase requires the carboxy end of the protein. Cell 20:749–760.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Becker, G.W. and Hsiung, H.M. 1986. Expression, secretion and folding of human growth hormone in Escherichia coli: purification and characterization. FEBS Letters, in press.

  12. Talmadge, K., Stahl, S., and Gilbert, W. 1980. Eukaryotic signal sequence transports insulin antigen in Escherichia coli. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 77:3369–3373.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Talmadge, K., Kaufman, J., and Gilbert, W. 1980. Bacteria mature prepoinsulin to proinsulin. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 77:3988–3992.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Emerick, A.W., Bertolani, B.L., Ben-Bassat, A., White, T.J. and Konrad, M.W. 1984. Expression of a β-lactamase preproinsulin fusion protein in Escherichia coli. Bio/Technology 2:165–168.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Tackitt, P.M. and Becker, G.W. Personal communication.

  16. Bewley, T.A., Brovetto-Cruz, J., and Li, C.H. 1969. Human pituitary growth hormone. Physicochemical investigations of the native and reduced-alkylated protein. Biochem. 8:4701–4708.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Narang, S.A., Hsiung, H.M., and Brousseau, R. 1979. Improved phosphotriester methods for the synthesis of gene fragments. Methods in Enzymology 68:90–98.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Martial, J.A., Hallewell, R.A., Baxter, J.D., and Goodman, H.M. 1979. Human growth hormone: complementary DNA and expression in bacteria. Science 205:602–607.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Morinaga, Y., Franceschini, T., Inouye, S., and Inouye, M. 1984. Improvements of oligonucieotide-directed site-specific mutagenesis using double-stranded plasmid DNA. Bio/Technology 2:636–639.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Maxam, A., and Gilbert, W. 1980. Sequencing end-labeled DNA with base-specific chemical cleavages. Methods in Enzymology 65:499–560.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Laemmli, U.K. 1970. Cleavage of structural proteins during the assembly of bacteriophage T4. Nature 277:680–685.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Burnette, W.N. 1981. “Western Blotting”: electrophoretic transfer of proteins from sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels to unmodified nitrocellulose and radiographic detection with antibody and radioiodinated protein A. Anal. Biochem. 112:195–203.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Sportsman, J.R. 1986. Manuscript in preparation.

  24. Riggin, R.M. and Becker, G.W. 1986. Manuscript in preparation.

  25. Somack, R. 1980. Complete phenylthiohydantoin amino acid analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography on Ultrasphere-octadecyltrimethyloxysilane. Anal. Biochem. 104:464–468.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Hsiung, H., Mayne, N. & Becker, G. High–Level Expression, Efficient Secretion and Folding of Human Growth Hormone in Escherichia coli. Nat Biotechnol 4, 991–995 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt1186-991

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt1186-991

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing