Surrogate thrombopoietin

The extracellular domain of human c-Mpl, the receptor for thrombopoietin (TPO), was expressed as a chimeric protein with the interleukin-2 receptor alpha chain on the surface of murine B cell-line B300-19. BALB/c mice were immunized with cells expressing the chimeric protein. The IgG purified from the resulting immune serum immunoprecipitated human c-Mpl. The immune IgG supported proliferation of both stable transfectant Ba/F3 cells expressing whole c-Mpl molecules (c-Mpl-Ba/F3 No. 9) and UT7/TPO cells bearing naturally occuring c-Mpl, whereas it did not support the growth of the untransfected parental Ba/F3 cells. Cell growth was induced using 3 to 100 mu g/ml of immune IgG in a dose-dependent manner, but this induction was decreased at doses higher than 100 mu g/ml. Non-immune IgG did not affect cell growth of c-Mpl-Ba/F3 No. 9 cells. Although the Fab fragment of immune IgG also immunoprecipitated c-Mpl, it did not support cell growth at concentrations as high as 180 mu g/ml, implying that the bivalent binding of receptors by antibodies is essential for cell proliferation. These results suggest that antibodies against human c-Mpl stimulate the proliferation and differentiation of megakaryocytes by their bivalent binding to receptors like TPO. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.