High-throughput recombinant gene expression systems in Pichia pastoris using newly developed plasmid vectors

We describe here the construction of Gateway-compatible vectors, pBGP1-DEST and pPICZα-DEST, for rapid and convenient preparation of expression plasmids for production of secretory proteins in Pichia pastoris. Both vectors direct the synthesis of fusion proteins consisting of the N-terminal signal and pro-sequences of Saccharomyces cerevisiae α-factor, the recognition sites for Kex2 and Ste13 processing proteases, the mature region of a foreign protein flanked by attB1- and attB2-derived sequences at N- and C-termini, respectively, and myc plus hexahistidine tags added at the extreme C-terminus. To test the usefulness of these vectors, production of endo-glucanases and xylanases from termite symbionts, as well as a fungal glucuronoyl esterase, was performed. Enzyme activities were detected in the culture supernatants, indicating that the chimeric proteins were synthesized and secreted as designed.