FT-IR study of heterologous protein expression in recombinant Escherichia coli strains.

Two recombinant Escherichia coli strains expressing different levels of an interferon fusion protein as inclusion bodies have been studied by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) microspectroscopy. A marker band at 1628 cm(-1) allowed monitoring of the protein expression by direct analysis of cell pellets in a rapid, non-invasive and quantitative way. The results demonstrate that FT-IR microspectroscopy is a technique of potential biotechnological interest for studying inclusion body formation.