Expression and efficient purification of tag-cleaved active recombinant human insulin-like growth factor-II from Escherichia coli

Insulin-like growth factor-II (IGF2) is a growth factor for the control of cell proliferation and apoptosis. To explore the clinical use of human IGF2, an efficient method for production of a large amount of active recombinant hIGF2 is necessary. Human IGF2 cDNA was cloned into pET32 vector where it is under the control of an IPTGinducible T7 promoter. High level soluble thioredoxin (Trx)-hIGF2 fusion protein was produced at room temperature following IPTG induction, amounting up to 20% of the total soluble bacterial proteins. The recombinant Trx-hIGF2 fusion protein was purified to an approximate 95% purity using Ni+-NTA affinity chromatography with an overall yield of 120 mg protein per liter of bacterial culture. After cleavage of the Trx fusion fragment by recombinant enterokinase, the tag-free recombinant hIGF2 protein (rhIGF2) was purified by passage through the Ni+-NTA affinity column again. Biological activity of the purified hIGF2 was determined by its ability to support NIH/3T3 cells proliferation and to activate AKT signaling pathways. Our results demonstrate that tag-free active rhIGF2 can easily be obtained for various applications from E. coli using the procedure described in this report.