Extracellular serine protease

1. DNA encoding a Tumor Antigen Derived Gene-14 (TADG-14) protein, wherein said protein has the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID No: 7, and wherein said DNA is selected from the group consisting of:

(a) isolated and purified DNA consisting of the sequence shown in SEQ ID No. 6;

(b) isolated and purified DNA which hybridizes at high stringency conditions to the antisense complement of the isolated DNA of (a) above, wherein high stringency conditions are characterized as membrane washing at high temperature and low salt concentration functionally equivalent to 0.1×SSC at 65° C., and wherein said DNA encodes a TADG-14 protein; and

(c) isolated and purified DNA differing from the isolated DNAs of (a) and (b) above in codon sequence due to the degeneracy of the genetic code, and which encodes a TADG-14 protein.

2. A vector capable of expressing the DNA of claim 1 in a recombinant cell wherein said vector comprises said DNA and regulatory elements necessary for expression of said DNA in a cell.

3. The vector of claim 2 , wherein said DNA encodes a TADG-14 protein having the amino acid sequence shown in SEQ ID No. 7.

4. An isolated host cell transfected with the vector of claim 2 , said vector expressing a TADG-14 protein.

5. The host cell of claim 4 , wherein said cell is selected from group consisting of bacterial cells, mammalian cells, plant cells and insect cells.

6. The host cell of claim 5 , wherein said bacterial cell is E. coli.

7. A method of detecting TADG-14 mRNA expression comprising the steps of:

(a) contacting mRNA obtained from a cell with a labeled hybridization probe comprising an open reading frame encoding a protein of SEQ ID No. 7; and

(b) detecting hybridization of said probe with said mRNA.