Nematodes are a very diverse phylum that has adapted to nearly every ecosystem. They have developed specialized lifestyles, dividing the phylum into free-living, animal, and plant parasitic species. Their sheer abundance in numbers and presence in nearly every ecosystem make them the most prevalent animals on earth. In this research nematode-specific profiles were designed to retrieve predicted...

The molecular recognition of carbohydrates and proteins mediates a wide range of physiological processes and the development of synthetic carbohydrate receptors ("synthetic lectins") constitutes a key advance in biomedical technology. In this article we report a synthetic lectin that selectively binds to carbohydrates immobilized in a molecular monolayer. Inspired by our previous work, we prepa...

Some physicochemical properties of the L-fucose-binding lectin from the serum of the European eel (Anguilla anguilla) were determined. The lectin is a dimer composed of identical subunits of Mr approx. 40000. In agreement with previous results [Horejsí & Kocourek (1978) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 538, 299-315], the subunit was shown to comprise two non-glycosylated polypeptides of Mr approx. 20000 ...

We have studied the interaction of the Gal-GalNAc-reactive champedak lectin-C with neuraminidase-treated and untreated IgA1 from IgA nephropathy patients. The binding ability of the lectin to untreated IgA1 from IgA nephropathy patients was significantly lower as compared to the untreated IgA1 from normal controls. This differential lectin-binding capacity was abrogated when the experiment was ...

Mannan-binding lectin (MBL) was first discovered as a plasma opsonin for baker's yeast and was independently characterized biochemically. It belongs to the small subfamily of collectins: C-type lectins possessing a collagen-like domain. MBL is synthesized by the liver and secreted into the bloodstream. It is believed to be an important component of innate immunity, acting as an ante-antibody an...

Surface carbohydrates of Giardia lamblia were examined using six plant lectins chosen because of their specificity for major carbohydrates moieties. The binding to axenically grown G. lamblia trophozoites was assessed in both a quantitative microagglutination assay and a fluorescence assay. Of the six lectins tested, wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) agglutinated the highest percentage (22.9 +/- 3.7%...

The ability of cells to bind to nylon fibers coated with lectin molecules interspaced with varying numbers of albumin molecules has been analyzed. The cells used were lymphoma cells, normal lymphocytes, myeloid leukemia cells, and normal and transformed fibroblasts, and the fibers were coated with different densities of concanavalin A or the lectins from soybean or wheat germ. Cells fixed with ...

Structural studies of oligosaccharide chains of immunoglobulin G (IgG) in serum have revealed a specific galactosylation deficiency associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Using a two-site lectin-immunofluorometric assay, I studied the interaction of IgG with immobilized lectins. Compared with control IgG, IgG purified from RA patients' sera bound up to 40-fold more strongly to immobilized B...

Helix pomatia agglutinin (HPA) is a N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) binding lectin found in the albumen gland of the roman snail. As a constituent of perivitelline fluid, HPA protects fertilized eggs from bacteria and is part of the innate immunity system of the snail. The peptide sequence deduced from gene cloning demonstrates that HPA belongs to a family of carbohydrate-binding proteins recent...