PRODUCTION OF RECOMBINANT SERA PROTEINS OF PLASMODIUM-FALCIPARUM IN ESCHERICHIA-COLI BY USING SYNTHETIC GENES

We expressed two regions of the serine repeat antigen (SERA) protein o f Plasmodium falciparum in Escherichia coli by synthesizing the genes with a changed codon usage. One of the synthetic gene sequences encode s amino acid residues 17-382 (SE47') and the other encodes amino acid residues 586-802 (SE50A). The products produced by the synthetic gene sequences in E. coli accounted for 15-30% of the total bacterial prote in. Antisera against both the purified gene products prepared in rats inhibited malaria parasite growth in vitro. The anti-SE47' serum was s ignificantly more inhibitory than the anti-SE50A serum. The described methods provide a large scale preparation of recombinant antigens for improving and producing malaria vaccine. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier S cience Ltd.