Biochemical Characteristics of Alpha Fetoprotein from Ascitic Fluid of Hepatoma

Abstract

In this study, we successfully purified the carbohydrate moiety of the alpha fetoprotein from ascites fluid of hepatoma patients by immunoaffinity chromatography and gel filtration chromatography. The results of the amino acid composition analysis showed that Glu had the highest proportion. Mannose, Galactose, Glucose, N-Acetylglucosamine and Sialic acid. were found in the alpha fetoprotein from hepatoma patients. No N-Acetylneuraminic acid was found in this study, even though it is an amino sugar content presenting in bovine alpha fetoprotein. The absence of N-Acetylneuraminic acid of alpha fetoprotein from hepatoma patients is probably due to the fact that the quantity was too low to detect. A molecular weight of 67,000 was found by SDS polyacrylamide. The amino acid sequence of this purified alpha fetoprotein, analyzed by the Department of Microbiology, School of Allied Health Science, the University of Texas Health Science Center at Dallas is RTLHRNEYGIASILDSYQCTA; the results of the first 10 amino acid sequence are in good agreement with the results made by Y. Koyama, K. Taketa, M. Azuma et al. in 1996. Eventually we will provide the alpha fetoprotein's data as a standard reference for clinical laboratories and research laboratories for other studies such as epidemiological studies of hepatocellular carcinoma in Taiwan.