A dual-functional Escherichia coli expression vector capable of producing soluble recombinant proteins with high immunogenicity in animals is introduced. This vector expresses polypeptides fused to a PTD-J-domain peptide. The J-domain peptide is derived from murine Hsp40 by using optimized codons for E. coli. The association of the J-domain to the nucleotide binding domain of the DnaK chaperone increases the probability that the fused polypeptide will be folded by the DnaK and hence increases the solubility of the recombinant protein. The PTD-J-domain can also enhance the immunogenicity of the fused chicken IGF-I polypeptide as well as an oligo-peptide derived from haptoglobin in rodents, possibly via the association with either the extracellular or intracellular Hsp70 proteins. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.