Heterologous Gene Expression in Escherichia coli

The Gram-negative bacterium E. coli is probably the most widely used host for heterologous protein production. An obvious advantage of this system is its simplicity. The genetics are well characterized, the cells grow fast allowing rapid production and analysis of the expressed protein, and transformation is simple and requires minimal amounts of DNA. 

A new insight into the problem of insolnbUity of heterologous proteins has evolved from further information regarding the in vivo function of molecnlar chaperones in protein folding. As reviewed by Baneyx, co-expression of chaperones in the bacterial system can improve the folding and hence the yield of heterologous proteins [96]. 

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Nishikubo, T. et al (2005) Improved heterologous gene expression in Escherichia coli by optimization of the AT-content of codons immediately downstream of the initiation codon. 

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