Construction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidin

Abstract Background Hepcidin is an antimicrobial peptide involved in innate immunity, and the addition of hepcidin or probiotics expressing hepcidin to feed can significantly enhance the disease resistance of farmed animals. Lactobacillus plantarum has the advantages of stable colonization in the an...

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Main Authors: Cheng-long Zhang, Guangtao Chen, Xiang Shan Ji, Jian Teng, Zhi Lei Yao, Chun Lei Hu, Yan Zhao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-07-01
Series:Microbial Cell Factories
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12934-025-02778-x
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author Cheng-long Zhang
Guangtao Chen
Xiang Shan Ji
Jian Teng
Zhi Lei Yao
Chun Lei Hu
Yan Zhao
author_facet Cheng-long Zhang
Guangtao Chen
Xiang Shan Ji
Jian Teng
Zhi Lei Yao
Chun Lei Hu
Yan Zhao
author_sort Cheng-long Zhang
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Hepcidin is an antimicrobial peptide involved in innate immunity, and the addition of hepcidin or probiotics expressing hepcidin to feed can significantly enhance the disease resistance of farmed animals. Lactobacillus plantarum has the advantages of stable colonization in the animal gut, promotion of intestinal health, and efficient expression of foreign proteins. Previously, we have used L. plantarum (LP37) as a feed additive to promote the growth of Micropterus salmoides and Oreochromis mossambicus. The aim of this study is to construct a recombinant LP37 expressing hepcidin and evaluate its role in improving antibacterial ability and growth promotion in M. salmoides. Results Based on the expression vector pSIP403, we used green fluorescent protein (GFP) as a reporter gene to compare the effects of four promoters on the expression levels of foreign proteins and selected the promoter TUFA with the highest expression level. By introducing the ribosomal binding site (RBS) and secretory signal peptide sequence (SP-PGH), we constructed a novel vector capable of efficiently expressing M. salmoides hepcidin (MsHep) extracellularly. Transformation of the novel vector into LP37 to obtain the recombinant strain: LP37-MsHep. This recombinant LP37-MsHep demonstrated considerable antibacterial activity against Aeromonas hydrophila and several other microbes. The dietary supplementation of recombinant LP37-MsHep for 60 days significantly enhanced the survival rates of M. salmoides and reduced tissue bacterial load in M. salmoides post infection with A. hydrophila, and regulated gene expression of FPN1, IL-10, TNF- $$\alpha$$ α , and MHC-II involved in iron metabolism and immunity. Similar to LP37, dietary supplementation of recombinant LP37-MsHep also significantly improved the final body weight (FBW), weight gain ratio (WGR), and specific growth rate (SGR) and reduced the feed coefficient rate (FCR). Conclusions Collectively, the recombinant LP37-MsHep is capable of significantly improving growth performance and disease resistance of M. salmoides, presenting it as a promising green feed additive in aquaculture with broad application potential.
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institution Kabale University
issn 1475-2859
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher BMC
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series Microbial Cell Factories
spelling doaj-art-008083e61eb74bb0ad375f7dc20e4f662025-08-20T03:42:03ZengBMCMicrobial Cell Factories1475-28592025-07-0124111410.1186/s12934-025-02778-xConstruction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidinCheng-long Zhang0Guangtao Chen1Xiang Shan Ji2Jian Teng3Zhi Lei Yao4Chun Lei Hu5Yan Zhao6Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Non-grain Feed Resources (Co-construction by Ministry and Province) of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shandong Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Non-grain Feed Resources (Co-construction by Ministry and Province) of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shandong Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Non-grain Feed Resources (Co-construction by Ministry and Province) of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shandong Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Non-grain Feed Resources (Co-construction by Ministry and Province) of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shandong Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Non-grain Feed Resources (Co-construction by Ministry and Province) of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shandong Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Non-grain Feed Resources (Co-construction by Ministry and Province) of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shandong Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Non-grain Feed Resources (Co-construction by Ministry and Province) of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Shandong Agricultural UniversityAbstract Background Hepcidin is an antimicrobial peptide involved in innate immunity, and the addition of hepcidin or probiotics expressing hepcidin to feed can significantly enhance the disease resistance of farmed animals. Lactobacillus plantarum has the advantages of stable colonization in the animal gut, promotion of intestinal health, and efficient expression of foreign proteins. Previously, we have used L. plantarum (LP37) as a feed additive to promote the growth of Micropterus salmoides and Oreochromis mossambicus. The aim of this study is to construct a recombinant LP37 expressing hepcidin and evaluate its role in improving antibacterial ability and growth promotion in M. salmoides. Results Based on the expression vector pSIP403, we used green fluorescent protein (GFP) as a reporter gene to compare the effects of four promoters on the expression levels of foreign proteins and selected the promoter TUFA with the highest expression level. By introducing the ribosomal binding site (RBS) and secretory signal peptide sequence (SP-PGH), we constructed a novel vector capable of efficiently expressing M. salmoides hepcidin (MsHep) extracellularly. Transformation of the novel vector into LP37 to obtain the recombinant strain: LP37-MsHep. This recombinant LP37-MsHep demonstrated considerable antibacterial activity against Aeromonas hydrophila and several other microbes. The dietary supplementation of recombinant LP37-MsHep for 60 days significantly enhanced the survival rates of M. salmoides and reduced tissue bacterial load in M. salmoides post infection with A. hydrophila, and regulated gene expression of FPN1, IL-10, TNF- $$\alpha$$ α , and MHC-II involved in iron metabolism and immunity. Similar to LP37, dietary supplementation of recombinant LP37-MsHep also significantly improved the final body weight (FBW), weight gain ratio (WGR), and specific growth rate (SGR) and reduced the feed coefficient rate (FCR). Conclusions Collectively, the recombinant LP37-MsHep is capable of significantly improving growth performance and disease resistance of M. salmoides, presenting it as a promising green feed additive in aquaculture with broad application potential.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12934-025-02778-xMicropterus salmoidesAntimicrobial PeptideHepcidinLactobacillus plantarumRecombinant strain
spellingShingle Cheng-long Zhang
Guangtao Chen
Xiang Shan Ji
Jian Teng
Zhi Lei Yao
Chun Lei Hu
Yan Zhao
Construction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidin
Microbial Cell Factories
Micropterus salmoides
Antimicrobial Peptide
Hepcidin
Lactobacillus plantarum
Recombinant strain
title Construction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidin
title_full Construction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidin
title_fullStr Construction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidin
title_full_unstemmed Construction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidin
title_short Construction and evaluation of recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum expressing Micropterus salmoides hepcidin
title_sort construction and evaluation of recombinant lactobacillus plantarum expressing micropterus salmoides hepcidin
topic Micropterus salmoides
Antimicrobial Peptide
Hepcidin
Lactobacillus plantarum
Recombinant strain
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12934-025-02778-x
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