NEW CELL GROWTH FACTOR AND CELL GROWING AGENT CONTAINING SAID GROWTH FACTOR AS AN ACTIVE INGREDIENT

PURPOSE:To provide a new cell growth factor which has a specific molecular weight and a specific N-terminus amino acid sequence and shows the activity of growing RPE(retinal pigment epithelial) cells, thus can be used as a therapeutic agent for eye diseases such as retinal pigment degeneration, retinopathy, maculopathy, retinal detachment or the like. CONSTITUTION:This new cell growth factor has an N-terminus amino acid sequence given in the formula, a molecular weight of 22,000+ or -2,000 (measured by electrophoresis with polyacrylamide gel containing sodium dodecylsulfate under non-reductive conditions) and shows an activity of growing RPE cells. Thus, it is useful as a therapeutic agent for eye diseases such as retinal pigment degeneration, retinopathy, maculopathy, retinal detachment or the like. This cell growth factor is obtained by inoculating human fibroblast cells in a culture medium, culturing them under stirring in a glass vessel at 37 deg.C, further continuing the cell culture for another 6 days after interferon f3 is added, then filtering the culture supernatant through a filter and purifying the filtrate with chromatography using silica gel column, hydrophobic column or the like.