Characterization of a thioredoxin-related surface protein

A surface-associated sulphydryl (thiol) protein (SASP) constitutively present in most nucleated cells was purified from human THP-1 monocytes and rat C6 glioma cells. The human protein was similar in mass and isoelectric point and had the same N-terminal amino acid sequence to adult T-cell leukemia-derived factor (ADF), a growth factor secreted by human lymphoid cells which is able to induce increased expression of interleukin-2 receptors. A further internal amino acid sequence, determined following cleavage of human SASP with cyanogen bromide, was also identical to the corresponding sequence deduced for ADF. Samples of SASP were able to reductively depolymerize human immunoglobulin, a property shared with thioredoxin, a ubiquitous protein, almost identical to ADF, with an essential function in many thiol-dependent reducing reactions. Furthermore, SASP purified from rat C6 glioma cells had an identical N-terminal amino acid sequence to that deduced for rat liver thioredoxin, showing that they were both members of the same family of proteins. The use of membrane-impermeable thiol reagents indicated that SASP was predominantly a cell-surface protein, and was not normally secreted. This SASP protein appeared to be a surface-associated form of thioredoxin that was constitutively present in a wide range of cells and was related to ADF, a secreted form of the same protein.