甲胎蛋白是存在于人胎儿血清中的一种胚胎蛋白,从胚胎六周起开始出现,以后急剧上升,14-16周达最高峰,分娩前很快下降,出生后婴儿血清中大为降低。在胎儿血、母血以及患肝癌的成年人和动物血清中含量很高,患其它肿瘤的动物则很少测得。1956年此种蛋白首先被Halbrecht 和Klibanski 发现,它界于白蛋白和α_1球蛋白之间,以后被命名为甲 Alpha-fetoprotein is an embryonic protein present in human fetal serum. It begins to appear from the embryonic six weeks and rises sharply thereafter. It reaches its peak at 14-16 weeks and drops rapidly before delivery. The serum of infants after birth is greatly reduced. . The levels of fetal blood, maternal blood, and serum of adult and animals suffering from hepatocellular carcinoma are very high. Animals with other tumors are rarely measured. In 1956, this protein was first discovered by Halbrecht and Klibanski. It bordered on albumin and α_1 globulin and was later named A.