Immunological properties of two fetus-specific globulins of rat in experimentally induced hepatic lesions.

Two fetus-specific globulins, al and a2·fetoglobulins, were detected in rat fetal serum, and the former was detected in amniotic fluid, using respective monospecific rabbit immune sera. Immunochemical distinction of these two proteins was demonstrated. By polyacrylamide gel disc electrophoresis, al-fetoglobulin was further resolved into fast and slow migrating subcomponents having a similar reactivity against the specific immune serum. The concentrations of these globulins in the serum of adult rat with experimentally induced hepatic lesions were determined by quantitative immunoprecipitin method or the Ouchterlony test using the specific antisera. ∗PMID: 4142359 [PubMed indexed for MEDLINE] Copyright c ©OKAYAMA UNIVERSITY MEDICAL SCHOOL Acta Med. Okayama 28, 321-332 (1974) IMMUNOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF TWO FETUS-SPECIFIC GLOBULINS OF RAT IN EXPERIMENTALLY INDUCED HEPATIC LESIONS Akiharu WATANABE, Kazuhisa TAKETA and Kiyowo KOSAKA Department of Internal Medicine, Okayama University Medical School, Okayama, Japan (Director: Prof. K. Kosaka) Received for publication, March 11, 1974 Abstract: Two fetus-specific globulins, al and a2·fetoglobulins, were detected in rat fetal serum, and the former was detected in amniotic fluid, using respective monospecific rabbit immune sera. Immunochemical distinction of these two proteins was demonstrated. By polyacrylamide gel disc electrophoresis, al-fetoglobulin was further resolved into fast and slow migrating subcomponents having a similar reactivity against the specific immune serum. The concentrations of these globulins in the serum of adult rat with experimentally induced hepatic lesions were determined by quantitative immunoprecipitin method or the Ouchterlony test using the specific antisera. Two fetus-specific globulins, al and a2·fetoglobulins, were detected in rat fetal serum, and the former was detected in amniotic fluid, using respective monospecific rabbit immune sera. Immunochemical distinction of these two proteins was demonstrated. By polyacrylamide gel disc electrophoresis, al-fetoglobulin was further resolved into fast and slow migrating subcomponents having a similar reactivity against the specific immune serum. The concentrations of these globulins in the serum of adult rat with experimentally induced hepatic lesions were determined by quantitative immunoprecipitin method or the Ouchterlony test using the specific antisera. Our studies on isozyme patterns of key glycolytic and gluconeogenic enzymes in injured livers of both animal and man have provided evidences of a reversion of differentiated liver cells upon liver injury towards those of regenerating and fetal livers and of hepatoma (1). In addition, the hepatitis and cirrhosis patients with increased faster migrating components of liver G6PD (glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, EC 1. 1. 1. 49), which were closely associated with the increased ratio of G6PD/GSH in liver (2,3), have been shown to be characterized by relatively high levels of serum arfetoprotein (2). These observations prompted uS to investigate the appearance of f etusspecific proteins in sera of adult rats with experimentally induced hepatic lesions. The present report describes the nature two fetus-specific proteins of rat as well as quantitative or semi·quantitative data of their concentrations in fetal fluids and sera from adult rats with various hepatic lesions. A method of purification of these proteins and the microheterogeneity of purified al,fetoglobulin will be described elsewhere (4). MATERIALS AND METHODS Animals: Male Sprague.Dawley rats, weighing 200-300 g at the age of at least three months and being maintained on Oriental Laboratory Chow MF, were used. Fetal rat serum was collected by decapitation of fetuses, which were obtained by cesarean section of female rats of the same strain at IS-20th