Isolation and characterization of a neurotrophic factor-like substance from venom of Agkistrodon acutus

A neurotrophic factor-like substance from Agkistrodon acutus was isolated by ion exchange and gel filtration chromatography and was found to be homogenous by electrophoresis. Its molecular weight was estimated to be approximately 26 kD by gel filtration. A characteristic of the substance was that the protein consisted of two subunits, which were bound one to another noncovalently. The analytical isoelectric focusing revealed its isoelectric point of 7.8. The biological activity of the substance was comparable to that of mouse 2.5 S NGF. It rescued PC12 cells from apoptosis at the concentration interval of 1-100 mu g/L and could induce PC12 cells differentiate to sympathetic-like neurons.