ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND The heterologous expression of parasitic proteins is challenging because the sequence composition often differs significantly from host preferences. However, the production of such proteins is important because they are potential drug targets and can be screened for interactions with new lead compounds. Here we compared two expression systems for the production of an active recombinant aldehyde dehydrogenase (SmALDH_312) from Schistosoma mansoni, which causes the neglected tropical disease schistosomiasis. RESULTS We produced SmALDH_312 successfully in the bacterium Escherichia coli and in the baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS). Both versions of the recombinant protein were found to be active in vitro, but the BEVS-derived enzyme showed 3.7-fold higher specific activity and was selected for further characterization. We investigated the influence of Mg2+, Ca2+ and Mn2+, and found out that the specific activity of the enzyme increased 1.5-fold in the presence of 0.5 mM Mg2+. Finally, we characterized the kinetic properties of the enzyme using a design-of-experiment approach, revealing optimal activity at pH 7.6 and 41C. CONCLUSIONS Although, E. coli has many advantages, such as rapid expression, high yields and low costs, this system was outperformed by BEVS for the production of a schistosome ALDH. BEVS therefore rovides an opportunity for the expression and subsequent evaluation of schistosome enzymes as drug targets