Dunaliella salina as a Protein Expression System for the Expression of the Endolysin Lysqdvp001 Against Vibrio parahaemolyticus

Abstract

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a gram-negative, halophilic marine pathogen that is the major cause of infections and death in aquaculture. Consumption of undercooked or raw infected seafood causes gastroenteritis in humans. Because of this rapid rise in the number of cases of vibriosis in fish and Acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) in crustaceans, the dependence on antibiotics has been on the rise, leading to the occurrence of more antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains. Endolysin, a lysin derived from bacteriophage is a great alternative to antibiotics. The fact that both endolysins and the bacteriophage are both species-specific, makes them even better replacement to antibiotics. In this study, the endolysin Lysqdvp001 which has been shown to be effective against Vibrio parahaemolyticus, is expressed and purified from E. coli. Further, endolysin Lysqdvp001 is also expressed in Dunaliella salina, a microalgae that is a cheap, easy to culture protein expression system. Dunaliella salina has many nutritional benefits because of the high concentration of β-carotene. Both the purified Lysqdvp001 and the Dunaliella salina expressed Lysqdvp001 are shown to have good antimicrobial properties against Vibrio parahaemolyticus.