Isolation of human alpha-1 fetoprotein (AFP) from induced abortion material

The isolation of alpha-1 fetoprotein (AFP) from material of an induced abortion is described. AFP is purified by anion exchange chromatography on DEAE-Sephadex A 50, affinity chromatography on Con-A-Sepharose, and preparative electrophoresis on agarose gel. The yield is about 10% of the original material. The purity was demonstrated by agarose gel electrophoresis and two-dimensional immunoelectrophoresis. The high concentration of AFP in material of induced abortion makes it particularly suitable for deriving human AFP.