Lactococcus lactis is safe lactic acid bacterium used as host organism for expressing therapeutically relevant recombinant proteins. When using lactic acid bacteria, their key ability is the release of recombinant proteins from cells. In Lactococcus lactis, the secretory peptide of endogenous protein Usp45 is used for enabling secretion of heterologous proteins. While the presence of signal peptide is crucial for achieving secretion, the process is not guaranteed to be effective. In the scope of this master’s thesis we established a system based on the expression of active lytic proteins, holin and endolysin, of native lactococcal bacteriophage for increased release of recombinant proteins from Lactococcus lactis NZ9000. The bacteriophage lytic protein holin forms pores in the cell membrane, enabling intracellular molecules to pass through the cytoplasmic membrane. One of the key proteins passing through the cell membrane is the lytic protein endolysin, which hydrolyses the peptidoglycan cell wall. Their expression increases the permeability of the cell membrane and cell wall degradation, causing the release of extracellular proteins. To analyse the extent of the release of the recombinant protein, we prepared genetic constructs for the co-expression of lytic proteins with the model recombinant protein cellulase. We evaluated the system by analysis of proteins in cell lysates and intracellular proteins released into the medium using sodium dodecyl-sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and immunodetection on the membrane. We discovered that the overall release of intracellular proteins was increased with the co-expression of holin. We also indirectly confirmed the increased release of cellulase with the co-expression of holin by analysing the release of cellulase on carboxymethyl cellulose plates. By analysing the growth and viability of Lactococcus lactis cell after the expression of lytic proteins, we found that both lytic proteins affected cell growth and delayed the lag phase, while reduced viability was observed only when holin was expressed. Despite its negative impact on viability, the developed system for enhancing the release of recombinant protein shows significant potential for application in biotechnology of lactic acid bacteria.
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