Production and targeting of the Brucella abortus antigen L7/L12 in Lactococcus lactis: a first step towards food-grade live vaccines against brucellosis.

ABSTRACT: Brucella abortus is a facultative intracellular gram-negative bacterial pathogen that infects humans and animals by entry mainly through the digestive tract. B. abortus causes abortion in pregnant cattle and undulant fever in humans. The immunogenic B. abortus ribosomal protein L7/L12 is a promising candidate antigen for the development of oral live vaccines against brucellosis, using food-grade lactic acid bacteria (LAB) as a carrier. The L7/L12 gene was expressed in Lactococcus lactis, the model LAB, under the nisin-inducible promoter. Using different signals, L7/L12 was produced in cytoplasmic, cell-wall-anchored, and secreted forms. Cytoplasmic production of L7/L12 gave a low yield, estimated at 0.5 mg/liter. Interestingly, a secretable form of this normally cytoplasmic protein via fus

SUBMITTER: Ribeiro LA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC126665 | biostudies-literature | 2002 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature