Biochemical properties of tissue polypeptide antigen.

Tissue polypeptide antigen (TPA) is a complex protein which has been originally identified in extracts of pooled tumors using horse antisera raised against the insolubles of human tumor cells. The antigen is now routinely detected and measured by a previously described hemagglutination inhibition assay. It has been shown by this method that the concentration of the antigen is higher in tumor tissues and in sera of cancer patients as compared to normal tissues or normal sera, respectively. In aqueous solutions, pH 2-12, TPA has a tendency to form high molecular weight aggregates. However they can be dissociated in sodium dodecyl sulfate into subunits, each appearing as a single chain peptide: B1 (Mr 4.3 x 10(4)), B2 (Mr 3.0 x 10(4)), C (Mr 1.7 x 10(4)). The subunits saturate anti-TPA serum indistinguishably from TPA. Amino acid composition of TPA and subunits is dominated by glutamic acid, aspartic acid and leucine, cysteine being absent in subunit B1. The isoelectric point of the main subunit, B1, is 4.4-4.6. Sedimentation and diffusion analyses indicate that pure subunit B1 in aqueous solution exists in distinct oligomeric states.