THE NK1 FRAGMENT OF HEPATOCYTE GROWTH FACTOR/SCATTER FACTOR (HGF/SF) AND VARIANTS THEREOF, AND THEIR USE

摘要

Variants of the NK1 fragment of the polypeptide growth factor HGF/SF which act as agonists of the MET receptor and their use are disclosed. The agonists comprise at least one substitution at positions equivalent to 132, 134, 170 and 181 of full length HGF/SF (SEQ ID NO:2) and these substitutions provide variants which show scatter factor activity and induce DNA synthesis. In vivo, the variants provide protection from liver damage in a model of acute liver failure.