Isolation and purification of a rat liver-specific antigen from hepatocyte membrane.

A rat liver-specific antigen (RLSA) solubilized with the nonionic detergent non-anonyl-N-methylglucamide was purified through affinity column chromatography with a monoclonal antibody and by high-performance liquid chromatography with a hydroxylapatite column. The purified RLSA showed a single band on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and its molecular weight was determined to be 105,000 in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol. The antigen was reactive to the Schiff reagent and contained glucosamine, but not galactosamine, indicating that the RLSA is a glycoprotein containing an asparagine-binding type of sugar chain.