Biological activity of vegetalizing and neuralizing inducing factors after binding to BAC-cellulose and CNBr-sepharose.

Covalent binding to bromoacetyl-cellulose inactivates the vegetalizing factor. The bound factor is however still able to form a complex with an inhibitor for the factor. Covalent binding to CNBr-Sepharose likewise inactivates the vegetalizing factor. The neuralizing factor on the other hand is not inactivated when covalently bound to CNBr-Sepharose. When a crude fraction which contains the neuralizng factor as well as the vegetalizing factor is bound to CNBr-Sepharose the vegetalizing activity is greatly decreased whereas the neuralizing activity is not reduced. This suggests that the mechanisms of action of the two factors are quite different. Whereas the vegetalizing factor must be incorporated into the cells, the neuralizing factor interacts with the plasma membrane of competent ectoderm cells.