Characterization of antigen 117. A developmentally regulated cell surface glycoprotein of Dictyostelium discoideum.

Antigen 117 is involved in the process of intercellular cohesion in Dictyostelium discoideum (Brodie, C., Klein, C., and Swierkosz, J. Cell 32, 1115-1123 (1983]. The antigen was shown to arise from a 62,000-64,000-dalton precursor. The mature antigen consists of two forms of molecular weights, 69,000 and 72,000. These forms are glycosylated, phosphorylated, acylated, and sulfated. Developmental changes in the cellular and cell surface levels of the antigen reflect changes in its rate of synthesis. All aggregating cells express antigen 117 on their surfaces. Antigen 117 then disappears from the surface of all cells when tip formation occurs. The antigen is re-expressed briefly again on cells undergoing culmination.