THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

DEPARTMENT OF

2 .
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND GENETICS MORE welantiicen

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND 21205

 

November 7, 1984

Dr. Byron Lane

Department of Biochemistry
Faculty of Medicine
University of Toronto
Medical Sciences Building
Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8
CANADA

Dear Byron:

It was very good to hear from you. I'm sorry not to have replied
earlier to your letter about proliferin and germin. Although these two
growth-related proteins could have similar functions, 1 would be
surprised if they were structural homologs. The prolactins (to which
proliferin is closely related) all have six cysteines, with neighboring
cysteines in intramolecular disulfide linkage. However, we don't yet
know what the activity of proliferin is. We recently found that it is a
placental hormone in mice and is secreted as a glycoprotein. We are in
the position of knowing its amino acid sequence but not its function.
Now we're trying to prepare the protein by recombinant DNA methods to
Jearn whether it works as a growth factor, as I suspect.

Your second letter speaks of unexpected funding difficulties.
Perhaps I could help by providing a few oligonucleotides. Please let me
know. Also you should consider using Davis' a» gt 11 expression vector
and screening plaques for germin-derived peptides with antiserum raised —
against germin. This vector has worked very well in a number of
jJaboratories.

As for my plans to visit your part of the world, I would enjoy a
visit with you and your colleagues (and with your wife), but I have no
plans that take me near Toronto.

Please let me know about the oligonucleotides.

With best regards to you and your wife,

Sincerely,

Daniel Nathans

BN/Ic