Characterization of the affinities of insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-binding proteins 1-4 for IGF-I, IGF-II, IGF-I/insulin hybrid, and IGF-I analogs.

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-binding proteins (BPs) bind IGF-I and IGF-II with high affinity and modify the activity of IGF peptides in a complex manner. We have characterized the affinities of IGFBP-1-4 for IGF-I and -II by employing 1) purified IGFBP preparations, 2) both [125I]IGF-I and [125I]IGF-II as radioligands, and 3) multiple IGF analogs designed to have altered affinities for IGFBPs. To this end, human (h) IGFBP-1, hIGFBP-2, and rat (r) IGFBP-4 have been purified to homogeneity from human amniotic fluid, human prostate epithelial cell culture, and B104 rat neuroblastoma cells; for human IGFBP-3, the glycosylated recombinant form (rec-hIGFBP-3), produced in Chinese hamster ovary cells, was employed. The IC50 values of IGF-I for hIGFBP-1, hIGFBP-2, rec-hIGFBP-3, rIGFBP-4, and human serum IGFBPs were 0.05 +/- 0.01, 5.0 +/- 0.01, 0.25 +/- 0.20, 0.6 +/- 0.4, and 0.1 +/- 0.01 ng/ml, respectively. While hIGFBP-1 and rIGFBP-4 had virtually equivalent affinities for IGF-I and IGF-II, hIGFBP-2 and rec...