[Localization of c-myc gene protein in hepatoma cells]

Localization of c-myc gene protein was investigated in human hepatoblastoma cells (Hep G2) and its derived tumor tissue in nude mice by using immunohistochemical method. Revealing by double staining technique, c-myc protein was located in the nuclei of tumor cells at a site different from where the nucleic acid accumulated but disappeared in the mitotic nucleus. It was confirmed to be in the nuclei, next to the chromatin by immunoelectron microscopy. This pattern was not influenced by HBsAg expression in tumor tissue derived from 2.2.15 cells (transfected Hep G2 cell line with HBV genome) and the intensity of c-myc protein became lower in those tumor cells with expression of HBcAg in the nuclei. Significance of the location of c-myc protein is briefly discussed.