Molecular cloning, codon-optimized gene expression, and bioactivity assessment of two novel fungal immunomodulatory proteins from Ganoderma applanatum in Pichia

Fungal immunomodulatory proteins (FIPs) have been identified from a series of fungi, especially in Ganoderma species. However, little is known about the FIPs from G. applanatum. In this study, two novel FIP genes, termed as FIP-gap1 and FIP-gap2, were cloned from G. applanatum, characterized and functionally expressed after codon optimization in Pichia pastoris GS115. Results showed that FIP-gap1 and FIP-gap2 comprised 342-bp encoding peptides of 113 amino acids, which shared a high homology with other Ganoderma FIPs. The yield of recombinant FIP-gap1 and FIP-gap2 increased significantly after codon optimization and reached 247.4 and 197.5 mg/L, respectively. Bioactivity assay in vitro revealed that both rFIP-gap1 and rFIP-gap2 could agglutinate mouse, sheep, and human red blood cells. Besides, rFIP-gap1 and rFIP-gap2 obviously stimulated the proliferation of mouse splenocytes and enhanced IL-2 and IFN-γ release. Cytotoxicity detection indicated that IC of rFIP-gap1 towards A549 and HeLa cancer cells were 29.89 and 8.34 μg/mL, respectively, whereas IC of rFIP-gap2 to the same cancer cells were 60.92 and 41.05 μg/mL, respectively. Taken together, novel FIP gaps were cloned and functionally expressed in P. pastoris, which can serve as feasible and stable resources of rFIP gaps for further studies and potential applications.