Promiscuity of host cell proteins in the purification of histidine tagged recombinant xylanase A by IMAC procedures: A case study with a Ni2+-tacn-based IMAC system.

Determination of the extent of host cell protein (HCP) contamination is an essential pre-requisite to validate the chromatographic purification of recombinant proteins. This study explores how different experimental conditions affect the HCP profiles generated during the immobilised metal ion affinity chromatographic (IMAC) purification with a Ni2+-1,4,7-triaza-cyclononane (tacn) Sepharose FF™ sorbent of the Bacillus halodurans N- and C-terminal His6-tagged xylanase A, expressed by Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) cells, and captured directly from cell lysates. Comparative studies were also carried out under identical loading, wash and elution conditions using nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), also immobilised onto an agarose support and complexed with Ni2+ ions. High-resolution tandem mass spectrometry of the tryptic peptides derived from the proteins present in the IMAC flow-through, wash and elution fractions confirmed that the E. coli BL21(DE3) HCP profiles were dependent on the choice of adsorbent. With feedstocks containing the N- or C-terminal His6-tagged xylanase A, in several instances the same E. coli BL21(DE3) HCPs were found to co-elute with the tagged protein from either adsorbent, indicating a preferential ability of some HCPs to bind to both the IMAC resin and to the recombinant protein. This promiscuous behaviour has been found to be due to factors other than just the presence of histidine-rich motifs within the amino acid sequences of these HCPs. This case study demonstrates that the choice of protein expression and separation conditions impact on the levels of HCP contamination when different IMAC systems are employed.

Identification of rhoptry trafficking determinants and evidence for a novel sorting mechanism in the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum.

The rhoptry of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum is an unusual secretory organelle that is thought to be related to secretory lysosomes in higher eukaryotes. Rhoptries contain an extensive collection of proteins that participate in host cell invasion and in the formation of the parasitophorous vacuole, but little is known about sorting signals required for rhoptry protein targeting. Using green fluorescent protein chimeras and in vitro pull-down assays, we performed an analysis of the signals required for trafficking of the rhoptry protein RAP1. We provide evidence that RAP1 is escorted to the rhoptry via an interaction with the glycosylphosphatidyl inositol-anchored rhoptry protein RAMA. Once within the rhoptry, RAP1 contains distinct signals for localisation within a sub-compartment of the organelle and subsequent transfer to the parasitophorous vacuole after invasion. This is the first detailed description of rhoptry trafficking signals in Plasmodium.

Recovery of ergosterol from the medicinal mushroom, Ganoderma tsugae var. Janniae, with a molecularly imprinted polymer derived from a cleavable monomer-template composite.

A semi-covalent imprinting strategy has been developed for the synthesis of molecularly-imprinted polymers specific for the fungal sterol, ergosterol, a biological precursor of vitamin D2. This imprinting approach involved a novel post-synthesis cleavable monomer-template composite, namely ergosteryl methacrylate, and resulted in the formation of an imprinted polymer that selectively and efficiently recognized ergosterol through non-covalent interactions. The derived molecularly-imprinted polymer and the corresponding non-imprinted polymer were systematically evaluated for their selectivity towards ergosterol via static and dynamic binding studies using various ergosteryl esters (e.g. ergosteryl-cinnamate, -ferulate, -coumarate, -ferulate acetate and -acetate, respectively) as competitors. Moreover, the binding capacity of the molecularly imprinted polymer for ergosterol was enhanced when the sample loading conditions involved the use of partially aqueous solvent mixtures, such as acetonitrile/water (9:1 (v/v) or 8:2 (v/v)). These attributes were exploited in a solid-phase extraction format, whereby ergosterol was obtained with excellent recoveries from an extract of the fruiting body powder of the medicinal fungus Ganoderma tsugae var. Janniae.

Effects of IMAC specific peptide tags on the stability of recombinant green fluorescent protein.

Immobilized metal ion affinity chromatography (IMAC) using peptide affinity tags has become a popular tool for protein purification. An important feature dictating the use of a specific affinity tag is whether its structure influences the properties of the target protein to which it is attached. In this work we have studied the influence on protein stability of two novel peptide affinity tags, namely NT1A and HIT2, and compared their effect to the commonly used hexa-histidine tag, all attached to the C-terminus of a enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP). A comparison of the influence of C- or N-terminal orientation of the tags was also carried out by studying the NT1A tag attached at either terminus of the eGFP. Protein stability was studied utilising guanidine hydrochloride equilibrium unfolding procedures and CD and fluorescence spectroscopy. The novel peptide affinity tags, NT1A and HIT2, and the His6 tag were found to not affect the stability of eGFP. Although these results are protein specific, they highlight, nevertheless, the need to employ suitable characterisation tools if the impact of a specific peptide tag on the folded status or stability of a recombinant tagged protein, purified by immobilized metal ion affinity chromatographic methods, are to be rigorously evaluated and the appropriate choice of peptide tag made.

Active immunisation with RAMA does not provide protective immunity against Plasmodium yoelii challenge despite its association with protective responses in endemic populations.

The rhoptry associated membrane antigen (RAMA) of Plasmodium falciparum has been proposed as a potential candidate for inclusion in a multivalent subunit vaccine against malaria. Previous studies have found that the RAMA gene is refractory to genetic deletion in vitro and is conserved in a range of clinical isolates. Importantly, two independent studies demonstrated that antibodies against the C-terminal region of RAMA are associated with immunity in endemic populations of both Asia and Africa. However, there is presently no direct evidence that anti-RAMA immune responses have a demonstrable anti-parasitic effect either in vitro or in vivo. In this study we used an in vitro invasion inhibition assay and the Plasmodium yoelii mouse model of infection to evaluate the potential of RAMA as a vaccine candidate. Our results demonstrate that anti-PfRAMA antibodies have only a weak inhibitory effect on P. falciparum invasion in vitro. Immunisation with recombinant PyRAMA protein did not protect mice against a lethal P. yoelii infection and did not boost the level of protection induced by a known protective antigen, merozoite surface protein 4/5. Taken together, these data do not support RAMA as a priority vaccine candidate.