Molecular properties of the nerve growth factor secreted by L cells.

Abstract
The molecular size and stability of the nerve growth factor (NGF) secreted in culture by L cells were studied by sedimentation and gel filtration chromatography. L cell NGF has a MW of 160,000. It contains as part of its structure a protein component that is biologically, immunologically and electrophoretically indistinguishable from the biologically active factor purified from mouse submandibular glands. Unlike pure gland NGF, L cell NGF is highly stable in solution, and this finding indicates that L cell NGF is a form of the factor different from that previously described.