Cloning, functional expression and characterization of an alkaline protease from Bacillus licheniformis

A gene (apr 46) encoding a protease was cloned from Bacillus licheniformis RSP-09-37. It had an ORF of 1725 bp, encoding a pre-protein of 575 amino acids (63.2 kDa), which was functionally expressed and processed in E. coli JM 109. The mature protein, Apr 46, consists of 500 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 55 kDa. This protease shows 29-50% homology to known serine proteases and conserved domains. N-terminal sequencing suggests that Apr 46 protease is identical to a B. licheniformis RSP-09-37 protease, which is further supported by a similar stability in acetonitrile.