Lactobacillus plantarum surface-displayed ASFV (p54) with porcine IL-21 generally stimulates protective immune responses in mice

African classical swine fever virus (ASFV) has spread seriously around the world and has dealt with a heavy blow to the pig breeding industry due to the lack of vaccines. In this study, we produced recombinant Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) expressing an ASFV p54 and porcine IL-21 (pIL-21) fusion protein and evaluated the immune effect of NC8-pSIP409-pgsA'-p54-pIL-21 in a mouse model. First, we verified that the ASFV p54 protein and p54-pIL-21 fusion protein were anchored on the surface of L. plantarum NC8 by flow cytometry, immunofluorescence and Western blotting. Then, the results were verified by flow cytometry, ELISA and MTT assays. Mouse-specific humoral immunity and mucosal and T cell-mediated immune responses were induced by recombinant L. plantarum. The results of feeding mice recombinant L. plantarum showed that the levels of serum IgG and mucosal secreted IgA (SIgA), the number of CD4 and CD8 T cells, and the expression of IFN-γ in CD4 and CD8 T cells increased significantly, and lymphocyte proliferation occurred under stimulation with the ASFV p54 protein. Our data lay a foundation for the development of oral vaccines against ASFV in the future. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13568-021-01275-9.