Expression of prtA from Photorhabdus luminescens in Bacillus thuringiensis enhances mortality in lepidopteran larvae by sub-cutaneous but not oral infection

•The prtA gene from Photorhabdus luminescens was expressed in Bacillus thuringiensis.•Oral dosage gave identical mortality in Pieris brassicae compared to the wild type.•Intrahemocoelic injection into Galleria mellonella produced a higher mortality.•The onset of death was more rapid by this route of infection.•The yield of B. thuringiensis in cadavers was higher than in the wild type.

The prtA gene from Photorhabdus luminescens encodes the virulence factor Protease A. When P. luminescens is injected into the hemocoel of insects by entomopathogenic nematodes, PrtA is a key component of pathogenicity thought to help degrade the immune system. The prtA gene was cloned and introduced on a plasmid into Bacillus thuringiensis. PrtA was shown to be actively expressed in vitro by cleavage of a specific Dabcyl–Edans heptapeptide substrate. There was no difference in the speed or level of mortality when spores and δ-endotoxins crystals of the transformed strain were fed to larvae of Pieris brassicae, as compared to the wild-type strain. When vegetative cells were injected into the hemocoel of larvae of Galleriamellonella, however, there was a significant increase in the rate and level of mortality over the wild type. The yield of B. thuringiensis per cadaver was a hundred-fold greater in the PrtA-secreting strain. The increased pathogenicity from intrahemocoelic infection may have been due to a greater ability to overcome the immune response of G. mellonella while other factors such as resident gut bacteria may have negated this advantage after oral dosage.

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