PROT3EcT, engineered Escherichia coli for the targeted delivery of therapeutics

PROT3EcT (PRObiotic Type III secretion Escherichia coli Therapeutic) is outfitted with a type III secretion system modified to deliver proteins into its surroundings. The design of PROT3EcT is modular. The operons that encode the protein secretion system are contained within a movable element. Their expression is controlled via a master transcription factor whose expression can be constitutive or regulated. Heterologous proteins can be engineered to be secreted by appending their amino termini with a type III secretion sequence.