EXPRESSION SYSTEM IN MICROORGANISM AND ITS USE FOR EXPRESSING HETEROLOGOUS AND HOMOLOGOUS PROTEINS

摘要

The present invention concerns the discovery of a new regulatory mechanism forgene expression in lactic acid bacteria (LAB),especially Lactobacillus sake LTH673 or Lactobacillus plantarium C11, thatincludes previously unrecognized strongly regulable promoterelements. The essential finding is that the expression of genes under thecontrol of a promoter element dependent on the expression of theIF-K-R gene cluster. The expression of the IF-K-R gene cluster is autoinducedby the secreted peptide encoded by IF, thus providing aregulable expression system for a desired protein. The invention furthercomprises the purified IF protein.