Protective immunity induced by the vaccination of recombinant Proteus mirabilis OmpA expressed in Pichia pastoris

• Firstly expressed Proteus mirabilis OmpA in cells of the Pichia pastoris.
• TPPPS could be used as an adjuvant to enhance immunogenicity of recombinant OmpA.
• Recombinant OmpA mixed with TPPPS was an effective vaccine against P. mirabilis.

Proteus mirabilis (P. mirabilis) is a zoonotic pathogen that has recently presented a rising infection rate in the poultry industry. To develop an effective vaccine to protect chickens against P. mirabilis infection, OmpA, one of the major outer membrane proteins of P. mirabilis, was expressed in Pichia pastoris. The concentration of the expressed recombinant OmpA protein reached 8.0 μg/mL after induction for 96 h with 1.0% methanol in the culture. In addition, OmpA protein was confirmed by SDS–PAGE and Western blot analysis using the antibody against Escherichia coli-expressed OmpA protein. Taishan Pinus massoniana pollen polysaccharide, a known plant-derived adjuvant, was mixed into the recombinant OmpA protein to prepare the OmpA subunit vaccine. We then subcutaneously inoculated this vaccine into chickens to examine the immunoprotective effects. ELISA analysis indicated that an excellent antibody response against OmpA was elicited in the vaccinated chickens. Moreover, a high protection rate of 80.0% was observed in the vaccinated group, which was subsequently challenged with P. mirabilis. The results suggest that the eukaryotic P. mirabilis OmpA was an ideal candidate protein for developing an effective subunit vaccine against P. mirabilis infection.