The expression and secretion of human lactoferrin in Bacillus subtilis

Abstract:

Human lactoferrin (HLF), an essential nutrient found in breast milk, possesses antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and immune-enhancing properties. In this study, the effects of three constitutive promoters (P₂₁, P₄₃, and P_veg) and three inducible promoters (P_grac100, P_xylA, and P_tet*) on the expression of HLF were compared using Bacillus subtilis G601 as the host strain. The results showed that the highest expression of HLF, reaching 651.57 μg/L, was achieved when regulated by the P_tet* promoter. Furthermore, the combinational optimization of ribosome binding site (RBS) and signal peptides was investigated, and the optimal combination of RBS6 and SP_yycP resulted in increased HLF expression to 1 099.87 μg/L, with 498.68 μg/L being secreted extracellularly. To further enhance HLF secretion, the metal cations-related gene dltD was knocked out, leading to an extracellular HLF level of 637.28 μg/L. This study successfully demonstrated the secretory expression of HLF in B. subtilis through the selection and optimization of expression elements, laying the foundation for the development of efficient B. subtilis cell factories for lactoprotein synthesis.