Production of surfactant protein C in the baculovirus expression system: the information required for correct folding and palmitoylation of SP-C is contained within the mature sequence

Surfactant protein C (SP-C) is synthesized in the alveolar type II cells of the lung as a 21 kDa propeptide which is proteolytically processed to a 4.2 kDa mature active form. The main function of this extremely hydrophobic protein is to enhance lipid insertion into the air/liquid interface in the lung upon inhalation. This is necessary to maintain a relatively low surface tension at this interface during breathing. In this report we describe the production of mature human SP-C in the baculovirus expression system. The recombinant protein contains a secondary structure with a high alpha-helical content (73%), comparable to native SP-C, as determined by circular dichroism and attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared analysis. The expressed protein is a mixture of dipalmitoylated (15%) and non-palmitoylated SP-C. This suggests that the information required for palmitoylation is contained within the sequence of the mature protein. The activity of the protein to insert phospholipids into a preformed monolayer of lipids at an air/liquid interface was determined with a captive bubble surfactometer. Recombinant SP-C significantly reduced the surface tension at the air/liquid interface during dynamic expansion and compression. We conclude that correctly folded, dipalmitoylated and active SP-C can be expressed in the baculovirus expression system. Our results may facilitate investigations into the relation between structure and function of SP-C and into protein palmitoylation in general.