Construction and properties of fusion proteins between human interferon-gamma and human tumour necrosis factors alpha and beta.

A number of recombinant plasmids coding for fusion proteins between human interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and human tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) or beta (TNF beta) were constructed by using site-directed mutagenesis and ligation of the respective genes. In these proteins the whole IFN-gamma sequence of the molecule is linked at the N terminus via a short polypeptide linker to the TNF alpha sequence lacking two N-terminal amino acid residues or to the whole TNF beta sequence. A series of mutants with deletions in the interferon part of the fusion proteins were also produced. All the fusion genes obtained were efficiently expressed in Escherichia coli under the control of early promoters of bacteriophage T7. The recombinant fusion proteins were found to be unstable inside bacterial cells. Bacterial cell lysates expressing these fusion genes or their deletion mutants showed both biological activities in vitro: the antiviral activity of IFN-gamma and the cytotoxic activity of TNF.