Coepibolin, the activity of human serum that enhances the cell spreading properties of epibolin, associates with albumin.

Earlier studies have shown that epibolin, a glycoprotein in human plasma, identical to preparations from other laboratories referred to as serum spreading factor and vitronectin, requires a second plasma activity in order to support maximal primary epidermal cell spreading. This plasma fraction, referred to as coepibolin, alone supports no cell spreading but potentiates the activity of epibolin by at least 5-10 times. Studies reported here indicate that coepibolin activity associates with one plasma fraction, it cannot be substituted by commercial preparations of ovalbumin, soybean trypsin inhibitor, or hemoglobin, but it can be substituted by commercial bovine or human serum albumin. The activity purified to electrophoretic homogeneity comigrates with, and shows antigenic properties of albumin. Under the assay conditions coepibolin affects the extent and morphology of cell spreading: in the presence of epibolin plus coepibolin cells assume a more polar orientation than in epibolin alone. For its maximal effect coepibolin must be present continuously in the early phases of cell spreading.