Interferon Heterogeneity Resulting from Differences in Glycosylation

Abstract

³⁵S methionine-labeled interferon synthesized in mouse C-243 induced by NDV in the presence and absence of glycosylation was analyzed after immunoprecipitation by gel electrophoresis. Interferons produced in the induced cells show large size heterogeneity in the region of 24,000-35,000-daltons. Interferon synthesized in the tunicamycin treated induced cells show two major bands of 15,000 and 18,000 dalton, which synthesis was also coded for by the interferon mRNA in cell-free system. The results indicate that the size heterogeneity of mouse interferons is due to the variability in the carbohydrate moiety of interferon polypeptides (α, β).