Expression and production of soluble Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv mycosin-3

• Production of soluble mycosin-3 from Mtb H37Rv.
• Soluble mycosin-3 was produced in E. coli strain Arctic Express.
• Soluble mycosin-3 without its N-terminal extension region was produced.

Mycobacteria encode five type VII secretion system (T7SS) or ESX for nutrient acquisition and virulence. Mycosins are membrane-anchored components of ESX with serine protease activity but an unidentified substrate range. Establishing the substrate specificity of individual mycosins will help to elucidate individual ESX functions. Mycosin-1 and -3 orthologues from two environmental mycobacterial species, Mycobacterium smegmatis and Mycobacterium thermoresistibile, have been heterologously produced, but mycosins from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) remain to be studied. Here we describe the successful production of Mtb mycosin-3 as a first step in investigating its structure and function.