Expression of secreted recombinant human insulin-like growth factor-II (IGF-II) in Chinese hamster ovary cells.

Chinese hamster ovary (CHO-KI) cells were cotransfected with a plasmid pcDNAI containing the human preproinsulin-like growth factor II cDNA linked downstream to the human cytomegalovirus promoter and with a plasmid containing the neomycin resistance gene (pMAM-neo). CHO neo+ were selected by growth in medium supplemented with G418 geneticin. After amplification, the neomycin-resistant clones were screened for IGF-II production. IGF-II produced was identified by dot blot and quantified by ELISA. The clones C24, C40 and C94 secreted IGF-II at about 350-400 ng per 10(6) cells per day. DNA analysis of C24 and C40 CHO cells by PCR demonstrated the presence of the IGF-II construct in the transfected cells, presumably integrated into the chromosomal DNA. IGF-II produced by CHO cells and purified by RP-HPLC was a mitogen for MCF-7 stimulating mitosis 2-fold.