Acid-labile subunit(ALS)는 85-kDa 크기의 당단백질로서 7.5-kDa의 insulin-like growth factor(IGF) 및 40~45-kDa IGF-binding protein-3와 결합하여 150-kDa ternary complex를 형성하는 혈장단백질이다. 선행연구에서 본 연구진은 reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR) 방법으로 돼지(porcine) ALS(pALS)의 coding sequence를 합성하여 plasmid vector에 삽입시켜 ‘expression construct’를 제작한 바 있다. 그러나 본 expression construct의 pALS coding sequence에는 PCR error로 추정되는 원인으로 말미암아 2개의 bases에서 mis-sense mutation이 일어난 것이 발견되었다. 본 연구에서는 ‘site-directed mutagenesis’ 방법으로 pALS의 올바른 coding sequence를 합성하여 ‘insert DNA’의 마지막 codon 다음에 ‘His-tag’ sequence가 위치한 pET- 28a(+) plasmid expression vector에 삽입하였다. 본 expression construct는 E. coli BL21(DE3) 세포에서 ‘induction’ 시켰고, 발현된 유전자재조합(recombinant) peptide는 Ni-affinity chromato- graphy로 정제하였다. 이렇게 affinity chro- matography로 정제된 peptide는 SDS-PAGE에서 66kDa 위치에 single band를 나타냄으로써 recombinant pALS의 예상된 질량과 일치하였다. 이상의 결과는 본 연구에서 recombinant pALS peptide가 성공적으로 발현정제되었음을 시사한다.
Acid-labile subunit(ALS) is a 85-kDa glycosylated plasma protein which forms a 150-kDa ternary complex with 7.5-kDa insulin-like growth factor(IGF) and 40~45-kDa IGF-binding protein-3. In a previous study, the present authors prepared a porcine ALS(pALS) expression construct by inserting a pALS coding sequence into a plasmid vector following synthesis of the sequence by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR). The expression construct, however, was subsequently found to have a mis-sense mutation at two bases of the pALS coding sequence which is presumed to have occurred through a PCR error. In the present study, the correct coding sequence was synthesized by the site-directed mutagenesis and inserted into the pET-28a(+) plasmid expression vector containing the His-tag sequence flanking the last codon of the insert DNA. After induction of the expression construct in E. coli BL21(DE3) cells, the resulting presumptive recombinant peptide was purified by the Ni-affinity chromatography. Upon SDS- PAGE, the affinity-purified peptide was resolved as a single band at a 66-kDa position which is consistent with the expected molecular mass of the presumptive recombinant pALS. Collectively, results indicate that a recombinant pALS peptide was successfully expressed and purified in the present study.
