Studies on the major fucosylated glycoprotein released into the medium by cultured human skin fibroblasts.

Electrophoretic analyses of the proteins synthesized by cultured human skin fibroblasts demonstrated that the major component released into the medium is a high molecular weight fucosylated glycoprotein (MFGP). Gel filtration chromatography under denaturing and reducing conditions indicated that MFGP has a molecular weight of approx. 250,000; but appears to behave as a disulphide-linked dimer when unreduced. MFGP is further distinguished as the major labelled macromolecule in the medium after incubation of fibroblasts with [35s]cysteine. The role of this glycoprotein is unknown but it bears a striking resemblance to a presumptive structural glycoprotein recently shown to be secreted by arterial smooth muscle cells in culture, and may also be related to a group of much studied cell surface glycoproteins.