Study on the production of human interferon alpha-2b expressed in Escherichia coli

The production process of human interferon alpha-2b was established in our institute. The human interferon alpha-2b was expressed in E. coli by using PL promotor. The production process consists of high cell density fermentation, refolding of the inclusion bodies, chromatography with Sephadex G-50 and DEAE, without using monocloning antibody affinity chromatography. After purification, about 500 mg of the human interferon alpha-2b was obtained from 1 kg wet cell harvested from 10 L fermentation broth. The biological activity shows 1-2 x 10(8) IU/mg protein. This production process is very simple and easy to scale-up. If this process adapted, it will save a lot of facility investment, space, and labor. Therefore, the cost will be reduced.