Structural properties of α‐fetoprotein from human cord serum: the protein molecule at low pH possesses all the properties of the molten globule

摘要

>Structural studies of α-fetoprotein (AFP) from human cord serum have shown that a decrease in pH to 3.1 leads to a considerable conformational rearrangement of the protein molecule. The acid form of AFP belongs to the class of denatured conformations and fulfills all the requirements of the molten globule state. The possible functional role of such a transformation is discussed.