Construction, expression, and characterization of thymosin alpha 1 tandem repeats in Escherichia coli

Biomed Res Int. 2013:2013:720285. doi: 10.1155/2013/720285. Epub 2013 Feb 28.

Abstract

Thymosin alpha 1 (T α 1), which is composed of 28 amino acids, has been commercialized worldwide for its immune-modulatory and antitumor effects. T α 1 can stimulate T cell proliferation and differentiation from bone marrow stem cells, augment cell-mediated immune responses, and regulate homeostasis of immune system. In this study, we developed a novel strategy to produce T α 1 concatemer (T α 1③) in Escherichia coli and compared its activity with chemically synthesized T α 1. Results showed that T α 1③ can more effectively stimulate T cell proliferation and significantly upregulate IL-2 receptor expression. We concluded that the expression system for T α 1 concatemer was constructed successfully, which could serve as an efficient tool for the production of large quantities of the active protein.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cell Differentiation / drug effects
  • Cell Proliferation / drug effects
  • Escherichia coli* / genetics
  • Escherichia coli* / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Immunity, Cellular / drug effects
  • Mice
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / biosynthesis
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / genetics
  • T-Lymphocytes / metabolism
  • Tandem Repeat Sequences / genetics*
  • Thioredoxins / biosynthesis
  • Thioredoxins / genetics
  • Thymalfasin
  • Thymosin / analogs & derivatives*
  • Thymosin / biosynthesis
  • Thymosin / genetics
  • Thymosin / metabolism

Substances

  • Thioredoxins
  • Thymosin
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases
  • STK36 protein, human
  • Thymalfasin