Expression of the cyan fluorescent protein in fibroin H-chain of transgenic silkworm

Abstract

We constructed the fibroin H-chain expression system to produce enhanced cyan fluorescent proteins (ECFP) in transgenic silkworm cocoon. Fluorescent cocoon could be made by fusing ECFP cDNA to the heavy chain gene and injecting it into a silkworm. The ECFP fusion protein, each with N-and C-terminal sequences of the fibroin H-chain, was designed to be secreted into the lumen of the posterior silk glands. The expression of the ECFP/H-chain fusion gene was regulated by the fibroin H-chain promoter. The use of the 3xP3-driven EGFP cDNA as a marker allowed us to rapidly distinguish transgenic silkworms. The EGFP fluorescence became visible in the ocelli and in the central and peripheral nervous system on the seventh day of embryonic development. A mixture of the donor and helper vector was micro-injected into 1,020 Kumokjam, bivoltin silkworm eggs. We obtained 6 broods. The cocoon was displayed strong blue fluorescence, proving that the fusion protein was present in the cocoon. Accordingly, we suggest that the ECFP fluorescence silk will enable the production of novel biomaterial based on the transgenic silk.