Biosynthesis and Characterization of Recombinant Silk-Like Polypeptides Derived from the Heavy Chain of Silk Fibrion

Abstract

In order to investigate the impacts on the structure and biomedical function of typical fragments derived from repetitive and non-repetitive regions of the Bombyx mori silk fibroin heavy chain, several block combination genes (gs16f1, gs16f4, gs16f8, and gs16f12) were designed, cloned into a fusion protein expression vector tagged with glutathione S-transferase (GST), and expressed in Escherichia coli. Fusion proteins GST-GS16F1, GST-GS16F4, and GST-GS16F8 were purified by GST affinity chromatography, and single bands were identified by SDS-PAGE. Under optimal initial cell density, in ducer concentration and induction expression time, the yield of purified GST-GS16F1, GST-GS16F4, and GST-GS16F8 per liter of bacterial culture reached 79, 53, and 28 mg, respectively. Mass spectrometry revealed molecular weights for GST-GS16F1, GST-GS16F4, and GST-GS16F8 of 37.7, 50.0, and 65.7 kDa, respectively, consistent with the theoretical values of 37.4, 49.4, and 65.5 kDa. Similarly, measured values of pI were 5.35, 4.5, and 4.2 for the fusion proteins, consistent with predicted values of 5.34, 4.44, and 4.09. CD spectra showed the molecular conformation of GS16F1 was mainly β-sheet structure, while more stable α-helix structure formed in GS16F4 and GS16F8.