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The insulin-dependent tyrosine kinase activity (TKA) of the insulin receptor (IR) plays an essential role in insulin signaling. Thus, dysregulation of IR-TKA might be an important element in the states of insulin resistance. A phosphorylated rat hepatic glycoprotein (pp63) acting as an inhibitor of IR-TK has been described. In search of the human homolog of pp63, we isolated a cDNA clone from a human liver lambda gt11 cDNA library. DNA sequence analysis reveals identity with the mRNA product of a human gene AHSG encoding a serum protein, alpha 2-Heremans Scmid-glycoprotein (alpha 2HSG), with heretofore unknown physiological function. Northern blot analysis demonstrates a 1.8-kilobase mRNA in human liver and HepG2 hepatoma cells. alpha 2HSG, purified from human serum, specifically inhibits insulin-stimulated IR autophosphorylation in vitro and in vivo as well as exogenous substrate tyrosine phosphorylation. alpha 2HSG also inhibits both insulin-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of IRS-1 and the association of IRS-1 with the p85 subunit of phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase in H-35 hepatoma cells. alpha 2HSG inhibits insulin-dependent mitogenesis, but does not affect insulin-stimulated induction of the metabolic enzyme tyrosine aminotransferase. alpha 2HSG does not compete with insulin for binding to IR. Finally, the action of alpha 2HSG is specific toward the IR-TK; its effect does not extend to insulin-like growth factor-I-stimulated TKA. Our results allow us to assign a biochemical function for human alpha 2HSG, namely regulation of insulin action at the IR-TK level.

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Escherichia coli K12 cells carrying a cloned 1.4 kb HindIII fragment from plasmid ColV2-K94, showed increased survival in guinea pig serum. The recombinant plasmid also conferred group II surface exclusion, i.e. the cells were reduced in recipient ability towards the incoming plasmid R538drd in conjugation experiments. Southern blotting suggested homology with bacteriophage lambda DNA and to the insertion element IS2. Determination of the DNA sequence of the fragment demonstrated the presence of a truncated IS2 (165 bp), separated by 250 bp from a 900 bp stretch of homology with lambda DNA, beginning within the Rz gene and continuing in the rightward direction on the lambda map. A 97 amino acid open reading frame (ORF) adjacent to Rz and on the opposite strand, remained intact in iss, with several amino acid changes. The ORF in iss is preceded by sequences resembling prokaryotic ribosome binding sites and promoters.

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Three of 64 IgA immunoglobuilins, derived from plasma cell tumors induced by mineral oil in BALB/c mice, precipitated with species-specific pneumococcus C polysaccharide. A related antigen was also found in group O and some group H streptococci. A difference in ability to precipitate a C polysaccharide from a pneumococcus type XIV was demonstrated between protein 603 which did precipitate and protein 167 which did not precipitate this polysaccharide. Studies of the 167 and 603 proteins showed differences in electrophoretic mobility and polypeptide chains. The antigen-combining site of the 167 and 603 proteins resided on the papain-digestion Fab fragment.

Concanavalin A precipitated less than 5 percent of immunoglobulin G from human serum. It reacted with all of 42 myeloma serums of the immunoglobulin G type tested, but no more than approximately 50 percent of the total myeloma protein was ever precipitated. The fact that not all of the protein was precipitated and that the amounts precipitated varied from serum to serum may be interpreted as demonstrating heterogeneity of the carbohydrate in these myeloma proteins. Other glycoproteins precipitated by concanavalin A were identified, and subsequently separated from concanavalin A by chromatography.