MEGAKARYOCYTE DIFFERENTIATION FACTOR

摘要

PURPOSE: Provided are a megakaryocyte differentiation factor, gene coding for the factor and a process for production thereof. The megakaryocyte differentiation factor is useful as a hematopoietic stimulating factor for megakaryocyte-platelet linease. CONSTITUTION: A megakaryocyte differentiation factor has the following properties; (1) stimulating differentiation of megakaryocytes; (2) exhibiting a molecular weight of 55 to 57 kD as determined by gel filtration and SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), and having no intermolecular disulfide linkage; (3) exhibiting an isoelectric point of 6.5+-0.5; and (4) having at least one of the amino acid sequences shown in SEQ ID NO: 1 to 9.