Description
Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) is a pleiotropic cytokine with an effect on the proliferation, differentiation and activation of granulocyte and primitive hematopoietic progenitors. It is produced mainly by monocytes and macrophages upon activation by endotoxin, TNF-α and IFN-γ. Other cell types that can secrete G-CSF include fibroblasts, endothelial cells, astrocytes and bone marrow stromal cells. Two distinct cDNA clones for human G-CSF encoding 207 and 204 amino acid precursor proteins have been isolated. The recombinant G-CSF contains 175 amino acid residues and has a predicted molecular mass of approximately 18.8 kDa