• BMB Reports
• /
• v.32 no.5
• /
• pp.429-435
• /
• 1999

Unlike the mammalian glucose transporter GLUT1, little is known about the nature of the endogenous sugar transporter(s) in insect cells. In order to establish the transport characteristics and other properties of the sugar transport proteins of Sf9 cells, a series of kinetic analyses was performed. A saturable transport system for hexose uptake has been revealed in the insect cells. The apparent affinity of this transport system(s) for 2-deoxy-D-glucose was relatively high, the $K_m$ for uptake being <0.5 mM. To further investigate the substrate and inhibitor recognition properties of the insect cell transporter, the ability of other sugars or drugs to inhibit 2-deoxy-D-glucose transport was examined by measuring inhibition constants ($K_j$). Transport was inhibited by D-mannose, D-glucose, and D-fructose. However, the apparent affinity of the C-4 epimer, D-galactose, for the Spodoptera transporter was relatively low, implying that the hydroxyl group at the C-4 position may play a role in the strong binding of glucose and mannose to the transporter. The results also showed that transport was stereoselective, being inhibited by D-glucose but not by L-glucose. It is therefore concluded that insect cells contain an endogenous glucose transport activity that in several aspects resembles the human erythrocyte glucose transporter. However, the mammalian and insect transporters were different in some of their kinetic properties, namely, their affinities for fructose and for cytochalasin B.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.12 no.2
• /
• pp.53-56
• /
• 2002

The baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) is one of the powerful heterologous protein expression systems using insect cells. As a result this has become a hot issue in the fleld of biotechnology. The advantage of the BEVS is that the large-scale production of heterologous proteins, which undergo posttranslational modification in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), can be accomplished. Altrough posttranslational modification of heterologous proteins in insect cells is more similar to mammalian cells than yeast, it is not always identical. Therefore, aggregation and degradation can sometimes occur in the ER. To produce a high level of bioactive heterologous proteins using BEVS in insect cells, the prerequisite is to completely understand the posttranslational conditions that determine how newly synthesized polypeptides are folded and assembling with ER chaperones in the ER lumen. Here, we provide information on current BEVS problems and the possibility of successful heterologous protein production from mammalian cells.

• Biomedical Science Letters
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.161-166
• /
• 2001

Most mammalian cells take up glucose by passive transport proteins in the plasma membranes. The best known of these proteins is the human erythrocyte glucose transporter, GLUT1. High levels of heterologous expression far the transporter are necessary for the investigation of its three-dimensional structure by crystallization. To achieve this, the baculovirus expression system has become popular choice. However, Spodoptera frugiperda Clone 9 (Sf9) cells, which are commonly employed as the host permissive cell line to support baculovirus replication and protein synthesis, grow well on TC-100 medium that contains 0.1% D-glucose as the major carbon source, suggesting the presence of endogenous glucose transporters. Furthermore, very little is known of the endogenous transporters properties of Sf9 cells. Therefore, human GLUT1 antibodies would play an important role for characterization of the GLUT1 expressed in insect cell. However, the successful use of such antibodies for characterization of GLUT1 expression m insect cells relies upon their specificity for the human protein and lack of cross-reaction with endogenous transporters. It is therefore important to determine the potential cross-reactivity of the antibodies with the endogenous insect cell glucose transporters. In the present study, the potential cross-reactivity of the human GLUT1 antibodies with the endogenous insect cell glucose transporters was examined by Western blotting. Neither the antibodies against intact GLUT1 nor those against the C-terminus labelled any band migrating in the region expected fur a protein of M$_r$ comparable to GLUT1, whereas these antibodies specifically recognized the human GLUT1. Specificity of the human GLUT1 antibodies tested was also shown by cross-reaction with the GLUT1 expressed in insect cells. In addition, the insect cell glucose transporter was found to have very low affinity for cytochalasin B, a potent inhibitor of human erythrocyte glucose transporter.

• BMB Reports
• /
• v.31 no.5
• /
• pp.453-458
• /
• 1998

Human thrombopoietin (hTPO) was expressed to high levels in insect cells using the baculovirus expression system. Full-length hTPO cDNA containing a native signal peptide sequence was amplified by PCR from a human fetal liver cDNA library and cloned into the Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus (AcNPV) expression vector. Immunoblot analysis with antiserum against hTPO indicated that an approximately 55 kDa protein was produced in recombinant AcNPV infected insect cells. Recombinant hTPO was produced 4-fold higher in Trichoplusia ni (Tn5) cells than in Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) cells. with most of the hTPO produced in Tn5 cells secreted into the culture medium. Addition of tunicamycin in the culture medium resulted in the reduction of the size of hTPO to 35-38 kDa, and most of the protein remained within the cell. These results suggest that N-glycosylation of hTPO is required for the secretion of the protein into the culture medium in insect cells. hTPO produced in insect cells induced proliferation and maturation of megakaryocyte progenitors, indicating that it is in a biologically active form.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.57-62
• /
• 2002

Cationic liposomes complexed with DNA have been extensively utilized for the delivery of reporter or therapeutic genes both in culture and in vivo. We investigated and determined the optimum conditions of a cationic liposome, composed of dimethyldioctadecy-lammonium bromide (DDAB) and dioleoyl phosphati-dylethanolamine UOPE), mediated a reporter plasmid expressing luciferase into insect cell lines (Sf-21 and Bm-N) and silkworm larvae. Together the data demonstrated that Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) genomic DNA (128 kb) was successfully transfected into Bm-5 cells using this liposome. These results suggest that DDAB/DOPE liposome will be useful as delivery agents for gene transfer to insect cells both in vitro and in vivo.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2002.04a
• /
• pp.62-65
• /
• 2002

We have previously shown that the addition of silkworm hemolymph to a culture medium increases the longevity of insect and mammalian cells by inhibiting apoptosis. This indicates that the component which inhibits apoptosis is contained in the silkworm hemolymph, The apoptosis-inhibiting component was isolated from silkwonn hemolymph and characterized in our previous study. A database search using the N-terminal amino acid sequence of this component as a template resulted in a 95% homology with a low molecular weight lipoprotein, the so called ’30K protein' of unknown function. In this study, the 30K protein gene was expressed in mammalian and insect cells to confirm the apoptosis-inhibiting effect. The overexpression of 30K protein in mammalian cell inhibited the staurosporin-induced apoptosis by the prevention of the activation of caspase 3. Using an Autographa californicanuclear polyhedrosis virus (AcNPV) system, the 30K protein was overexpressed also in insect cells. The expression of the 30K protein increased the longevity of baculovirus-infected insect cells by inhibiting apoptosis. These results suggest that the 30K protein is a novel anti-apoptotic protein.

• The Journal of Korean Society of Virology
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.137-144
• /
• 1999

Transformation efficiency, virus multiplication and foreign gene expression were characterized in the insect cells transformed with Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus (AcNPV) immediate early 1 gene (IE1). Transformation efficiency of insect cells by AcNPV IE1 gene vector horboring foreign gene was approximately 8-fold higher in the Sf9 cells transformed previously with AcNPV IE1 gene than in the normal Sf9 cells. Virus multiplication and foreign gene expression of recombinant baculovirus in the Sf9 cells transformed with AcNPV IE1 gene were similar to those of the normal Sf9 cells. These results suggest that transformed cells displaying foreign gene product by using AcNPV IE1 gene promoter will be useful for the diverse applications of insect cells.

• Biomedical Science Letters
• /
• v.9 no.4
• /
• pp.177-181
• /
• 2003

The baculovirus/Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf) cell system has become popular for the production of large amounts of the human erythrocyte glucose transporter, GLUT1, heterologously. However, it was not possible to show that the expressed transporter in insect cells could actually transport glucose. The possible reason for this was that the activity of the endogenous insect glucose transporter was extremely high and so rendered transport activity resulting from the expression of exogenous transporter very difficult to detect. Sf21-AE cells are commonly employed as the host permissive cell line to support the baculovirus AcNPV replication and protein synthesis. The cells grow well on TC-100 medium that contains 0.1 % D-glucose as the major carbon source, strongly suggesting the presence of endogenous glucose transporters. However, unlike the human glucose transporter, very little is known about properties of the endogenous sugar transporter(s) in insect cells. Thus, the uptake of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2dGlc) by Sf21-AE cells and the inhibition of 2dGlc transport in the insect cells by fructose and cytochalasin B were investigated in the present work. The binding assay of cytochalasin B was also performed, which could be used as a functional assay for the endogenous glucose transporter(s) in the insect cells. Sf21-AE cells were infected with the recombinant virus AcNPV-GT or no virus, at a multiplicity of infection (MOI) of 5. Infected cells were resuspended in PBS plus and minus 300 mM fructose, and plus and minus 20 $\mu$M cytochalasin B for use in transport assays. Uptake was measured at 28$^{\circ}C$ for 1 min, with final concentration of 1 mM deoxy-D-glucose, 2-[1,2-$^3$H]- or glucose, L-[l,$^3$H]-, used at a specific radioactivity of 4 Ci/mol. The results obtained demonstrated that the sugar uptake in uninfected cells was stereospecific, and was strongly inhibited by fructose but only poorly inhibitable by cytochalasin B. It is therefore suggested that the Sf21-AE glucose transporter has very low affinity for cytochalasin B, a potent inhibitor of human erythrocyte glucose transporter.

• Biomedical Science Letters
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.160-164
• /
• 2012

The baculovirus/insect cell expression system is of great value for the large-scale production of normal and mutant mammalian passive glucose-transport proteins heterologously for structural and functional studies. In most mammalian cells that express HepG2, this transporter isoform is predominantly located at the cell surface. However, it had been reported that heterologous expression of other membrane proteins using the baculovirus system induced highly vacuolated cytoplasmic membranes. Therefore, how a cell responds to the synthesis of large amounts of a glycoprotein could be an interesting area for investigation. In order to examine the subcellular location of the human HepG2 transport proteins when expressed in insect cells, immunofluorescence studies were carried out. Insect cells were infected with the recombinant baculovirus AcNPVHIS-GT or with wild-type virus at a MOI of 5, or were not exposed to viral infection. A high level of fluorescence displayed in cells infected with the recombinant virus indicated that transporters are expressed abundantly and present on the surface of infected Sf21 cells. The evidence for the specificity of the immunostaining was strengthened by the negative results shown in the negative controls. Distribution of the transporter protein expressed in insect cells was further revealed by making a series of optical sections through an AcNPVHIS-GT-infected cell using a confocal microscope, which permits optical sectioning of cell sample. These sections displayed intense cytoplasmic immunofluorecence surrounding the region occupied by the enlarged nucleus, indicating that the expressed protein was present not only at the cell surface but also throughout the cytoplasmic membranous structures.

• Biomedical Science Letters
• /
• v.8 no.4
• /
• pp.211-215
• /
• 2002

The baculovirus/Sf9 cell expression can be employed as a powerful system for producing large amounts of the human erythrocyte glucose transporter, GLUT1 heterologously In order to exploit the system further, it is necessary to develop a convenient method for demonstrating that the transporter expressed in insect cells is biologically active. To achieve this, we have expressed the human CLUT1 in insect cells and photolabelled the expressed protein with [$^3$H] cytochalasin B, a potent inhibitor of the human erythrocyte glucose transporter. Subsequently, the labelled proteins were analysed by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Membranes labelled with [$^3$H] cytochalasln B in the presence of L-Glucose yielded a single sharp peak of labelling of apparent $M_r$ 45,000 on SDS/polyacrylamide gels. The mobility of this peak corresponded exactly to that of the band detected by anti-glucose transporter antibodies on Western blots of membranes prepared from insect cells infected with recombinant virus. In addition, the sharpness of the radioactive peak provides further evidence for the conclusion that the expressed protein is much less heavily and heterogeneously glycosylated than its erythrocyte counterpart. No peak of labelling was seen with the membranes prepared from non-infected Sf9 cells. Furthermore, the incorporation of label into this peak was completely inhibited by the presence of 500 mM-D-Glucose during tile photolabelling procedure, showing the stereoselectivity of the labelling. These evidences clearly show that human glucose transporter expressed in insect cells exhibits native-like biological activity, and that photolabelling with [$^3$H] cytochalasin B can be a convenient means for analysing the biological activity of the transport protein expressed in insect cells.