Efficient expression of antibody fragments with the Brevibacillus expression system

Abstract

Antibodies, owing to their capability to bind specifically to a target molecule, have been and will continue to be applied in various areas, including research, diagnosis and therapy. In particular, antibody fragments, which are size-reduced antibodies comprising functional variable domains, are suited for production in bacteria. They also are useful in applications requiring intracellular delivery and for further engineering toward molecules possessing multiple custom functions. An expression system based on Brevibacillus is characterized by high efficiency and simple genetic recombination for secretory production. The Brevibacillus expression system has been successfully utilized for the efficient production of antibody fragments, e.g., scFvs (single-chain antibody fragments) comprising heavy-chain and light-chain variable domains, linked by a spacer sequence. Expression in fusion with a Halobacterium-derived secretory protein was shown to confer enhanced productivity. In the case of Fabs, productivity as high as 100 mg/L was accomplished in a simple system, i.e., shake flask cultures. The Brevibacillus expression system offers several advantages, shared by other bacterial systems, such as E. coli, in particular, for the ease in genetic engineering and culture production. © 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.