Co-solute assistance in refolding of recombinant proteins

Prokaryotic expression system is the most widely used host for the production of recombinant proteins but inclusion body formation is a major bottleneck in the production of recombinant proteins in prokaryotic cells, especially in Escherichia coli . In vitro refolding of inclusion body into the the proteins with native conformations is a solution for this problem but there is a need for optimization of condition for each protein specifically. Several approaches have been described for in vitro refolding; most of them involve the use of additives for assisting correct refolding. Co-solutes play a major role in refolding process and can be classified according to their function as, aggregation suppressors and folding enhancers. This study presents a review of additives that are used in refolding process of insoluble recombinant proteins in small scale and industrial process. Key words : Refolding, protein aggregation, low-molecular-weight additives, arginine.