AN ULTRASTRUCTURAL SURVEY OF CRYPTOMONAD PERIPLASTS USING QUICK-FREEZING FREEZE FRACTURE TECHNIQUES1

A quick-freezing technique for freeze fracturing was used to determine periplast plate types in 20 cryptomonads. With this technique cells are frozen so rapidly that major artifacts are eliminated. We propose that periplast plates are attached to the cell membrane by intramembrane particles (IMP's), consequently plate shapes are outlined by IMP distribution in fractured membranes. Round to oval, sometimes slightly angular, plates occur in Cryptomonas ovata, Cryptomonas tetrapyrenoidosa, Cryptomonas parapyrenoidifera, Cryptomonas obovata, Cryptomonas erosa and two unidentified species of Cryptomonas; large rectangular plates occur in Chroomonas pochmannii, Chroomonas coerulea and Hemiselmis sp.; small rectangular plates were found in Cryptomonas sp. (Strain SDB); square to slightly rounded plates occur in Cryptomonas chrysoidea and a single continuous plate or sheet, perforated by ejectisome pores, was observed in Cryptomonas caudata, Cryptomonas rostratiformis, Cryptomonas marssonii, Cryptomonas platyuris, Cryptomonas curvata, Cryptomonas ozolini, Chilomonas paramecium and Rhodomonas sp. Oval and square plates are described for the first time in Cryptomonas. Plate IMP's may be morphologically modified in size and shape, depending upon their location in relation to the plate, the plate ridges, and ejectisome chambers. Conformational changes in plate shapes, to form hexagons or polygons, may be induced when cells are subjected to fixation, desiccation, cryoprotectants or centrifugation.     

Trypanosoma brucei brucei and Trypanosoma brucei gambiense: stage specific differences in wheat germ agglutinin binding and in endoglycosidase H sensitivity of glycoprotein oligosaccharides

Gel electrophoresis, lectin affinity blotting, and endoglycosidase H digestion have been used to analyze the glycoprotein profiles of bloodstream and procyclic forms of Trypanosoma brucei brucei and T. b. gambiense. Proteins resolved by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis were stained with silver nitrate or electrophoretically transferred to nitrocellulose and probed with a horseradish peroxidase conjugate of either concanavalin A or wheat germ agglutinin. Silver staining showed, as expected, that the expression of the variant specific glycoprotein was restricted to the bloodstream forms. Twenty-three concanavalin A binding proteins were resolved in blots of bloodstream forms. Concanavalin A binding molecules corresponding in electrophoretic mobility to 21 of these 23 bloodstream form glycoproteins were detected in blots of procyclic forms. The two concanavalin A binding glycoproteins present only in bloodstream form extracts were variant specific glycoprotein and an 81-kDa protein designated glycoprotein 81b. One concanavalin A binding molecule of 84 kDa, glycoprotein 84p, was detected only in procyclic forms. The 19 major wheat germ agglutinin binding glycoproteins expressed by bloodstream forms were not detected in procyclic forms; only small proteins or protein fragments in procyclic form extracts bound wheat germ agglutinin. Incubating transferred proteins in endoglycosidase H eliminated subsequent binding of concanavalin A to most of the 22 common glycoproteins of bloodstream forms. Three major concanavalin A binding glycoproteins of bloodstream forms, variant specific glycoprotein, glycoprotein 81b, and a 110-kDa molecule (glycoprotein 110b), and other minor glycoproteins carried sugar chains that resisted endoglycosidase H digestion. In contrast, concanavalin A did not bind to any procyclic form glycoproteins, including a 110-kDa concanavalin A binding molecule (glycoprotein 110p) after endoglycosidase H treatment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Stimulation of the membrane-bound, magnesium-dependent adenosine triphosphatase of mouse neuroblastoma by concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin.

The effect of the plant lectins concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin on the membrane-bound Mg⁺²-dependent ATPase of an adrenergic clone of mouse neuroblastoma was examines. When cell membranes were treated with concanavalin A or wheat germ agglutinin, a dose-related increase in ATPase-specific activity was observed. Maximal stimulation was greater with wheat germ agglutinin than with concanavalin A; half-maximal and maximal stimulation occurred at similar lectin concentrations. Concanavalin A-dependent stimulation was blocked by α-methylmannoside but not by N-acetylglucosammine. Conversely, stimulation with wheat germ agglutinin was prevented by N-acetylglucosamine but not by α-methylmannoside. The combined effects of concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin were greater than the individual effects of either, but were not additive. The results suggest that these lectins interact specifically with membrane glycoproteins or glycolipids, resulting in enhancement of Mg⁺²-dependent ATPase activity.     

Concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin receptor activity of sialoglycopeptides isolated from the surface of Novikoff hepatoma cells

Novikoff ascites hepatoma cells were highly agglutinable by the plant lectins concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin. Treatment of the intact cells with papain released from the cell surface a glycopeptide fraction which possessed concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin receptor activity, as judged by its ability to inhibit lectin-induced hemagglutination. A component of the cell-surface glycopeptide fraction, excluded from Sephadex G-50, possessed lectin receptor activities reflecting the cytoagglutination properties of the intact cells from which it was derived. Further resolution of this component by pronase digestion, gel filtration, and ion-exchange chromatography resulted in the isolation of sialoglycopeptides which exhibited potent and specific concanavalin A receptor activity.     

Double label freeze-etch study of the relative topography of concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin receptors at the myoblast surface

This report records for the first time double-label freeze-etch electron microscopy of cells in culture. On L6 rat myoblasts, receptors for wheat germ agglutinin and concanavalin A were found distributed together in irregular granular microclusters of cell surface material up to 60 nm in diameter. Simultaneous localization of two different receptor families to such small regions using colloidal gold and ferritin to differentiate between lectin markers proved difficult in our hands. We were able to achieve the desired result using native concanavalin A and ferritin-conjugated wheat germ agglutinin, whose shadowed diameters are measurably different.     

Use of lectins for detection of electrophoretically separated glycoproteins transferred onto nitrocellulose sheets

A method of rapidly identifying lectin-binding glycoproteins separated by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis is described. The method is particularly useful for comparing the glycoprotein content of different cell types and fractions. Normal rat liver, Novikoff hepatoma, and rat mammary tumor cell line 13762 MAT-B were fractionated to give purified nuclei and other fractions defined by their sedimentation properties in low ionic strength buffer. The subcellular fractions were separated by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulfate, transferred to nitrocellulose sheets, and localized by an immunochemical method to identify lectin-binding activities. The localization pattern of concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin-binding activities in the fractions from the three cell types showed the greatest similarities between the glycoprotein contents of normal liver and Novikoff hepatoma fractions. On a per-cell basis the purified nuclei from each of the cell types contained less activity overall than did other particulate cell fractions. Washing the nuclei from normal liver and Novikoff hepatoma, but not MAT-B cells, in nonionic detergent removed or depressed most of the lectin-binding activities. However, two major bands were unaffected by the detergent. One of these localized with wheat germ agglutinin at an apparent molecular weight of 62,000 in the nuclei of all three cell types. The other localized with concanavalin A at an apparent molecular weight of 200,000 in normal liver and Novikoff hepatoma nuclei.     

Some physicochemical aspects of oligosaccharide binding to concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin

The binding of fluorescently labelled carbohydrates to concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin was studied at equilibrium and by the stopped-flow and temperature jump relaxation methods. Ligand were mainly die 4-methylumbelliferyl glycosides of α (1 → 2)-linked manno-oligosaccharides and of β (1 → 4)-linked chito oligosaccharides as limited homologous series. They offer distinct advantages, parti cularly for kinetic studies.Enthalpie and kinetic considerations suggest that concanavalin A specifically binds a single mannopyranosyl group in α (1 →2)-linked manno-oligosaccharides. This occurs preferentially at the non-reducing end. Glycosylation of a carbohydrate withe.g. an aryl group does not afect die binding kinetics and for all carbohydrates the association rate is comparable but relatively slow, which indicates that a common process is involved in the binding of all carbohydrates to concanavalin A. The affinity of a carbohydrate for concanavalin A is determined by the dissociation-rate parameter, resulting in a longer residence time for a better ligand.Interaction of chito-oligosaccharides with wheat germ agglutinin is complex. With the larger members of the 4-methylumbelliferyl chito-oligosaccharides, binding studies were only possible at low fractional saturation to avoid formation of unsoluble complexes. The binding kinetics of wheat germ agglutinin are faster than with concanavalin A and are consistent with a wheat germ agglutinin binding region composed of two adjacent subsites. For binding of the monoside as well as the bioside, two consistent kinetic models apply. They have common that for each ligand there exist two complexes with comparable population.     

Regeneration of the cell wall in protoplasts of Candida albicans

To assess the dynamics of synthesis of the wall by regenerating Candida albicans protoplasts deposition of chitin and mannoproteins were investigated ultrastructurally using wheat germ agglutinin conjugated with either horseradish peroxidase or colloidal gold, and Concanavalin A coupled to ferritin respectively.Freshly prepared protoplasts lacked wheat germ agglutinin receptor sites but after 1–2 h of regeneration, they were detected. After 4–5 h of regeneration, the cell wall showed a discrete structure which was only labelled with wheat germ agglutinin in thin sections. At this stage of regeneration the outermost layer of the wall was labelled with clusters of Concanavalin A-ferritin particles.After 8 h regeneration, the cell wall appeared compact, and homogenously marked with wheat germ agglutinin whereas only the surface layers appeared consistently labelled with Concanavalin A-ferritin.From these observations we conclude that C. albicans protoplasts are able to regenerate in liquid medium a cell wall consisting of a network of chitin fibrils and mannoproteins at least (glucan polymers were not determined in the present cytological study). The former are the fundamental component of the inner layers at early stages of regeneration, whereas the latter molecules are predominant in the outer layers of the wall.Abbreviations WGA-HRP wheat germ agglutinin conjugated with horseradish peroxidase - WGA-Au wheat germ agglutinin conjugated with colloidal gold - Con A-ferritin Concanavalin A coupled to ferritin     

Regulation of surfactant phospholipid secretion from isolated rat alveolar type II cells by lectins

The major surfactant-associated protein is a potent inhibitor of surfactant phospholipid secretion from isolated type II cells. Since the major surfactant-associated protein contains a carboxy terminal polypeptide domain which is homologous to the lectin-like liver mannose-binding protein, we tested whether lectins inhibit surfactant phospholipid secretion from rat alveolar type II cells. Concanavalin A, wheat germ agglutinin and Maclura pomifera agglutinin were potent inhibitors of surfactant phospholipid secretion. When adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) was utilized as a secretagogue, the IC50 values for inhibition of surfactant phospholipid secretion were 5.10(-7) (wheat germ agglutinin), 1.10(-6) (concanavalin A) and 2.5.10(-5) M (M. pomifera agglutinin). Similar results were obtained when 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate was utilized as a secretagogue: IC50 values of 1.10(-6) M for concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin and 2.5.10(-5) M for M. pomifera agglutinin. Hapten sugars were utilized to antagonize the inhibitory effect of the lectins. N-Acetyl-D-glucosamine significantly reversed inhibition of phospholipid secretion by wheat germ agglutinin in a dose-dependent fashion and methyl alpha-D-mannoside significantly reversed inhibition of phospholipid secretion by concanavalin A. N-Acetyl-D-galactosamine had no significant effect on inhibition of secretion produced by any of the lectins. The inhibitory effect of the lectins did not appear to be due to cytotoxicity since lactate dehydrogenase was not released above control levels and the inhibition of the surfactant phospholipid secretion by wheat germ agglutinin could be reversed after treatment of cells with wheat germ agglutinin by washing the lectin from the cells followed by treatment of the cells with ATP. These studies demonstrate a direct inhibitory effect of plant lectins on phospholipid secretion from type II cells in vitro.     

Studies on lectin-induced agglutination of Drosophila embryonic cell lines

The agglutination responses of three Drosophila cell lines to concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinin have been examined. Although the cell lines were originally derived from late embryonic stages of the Ore-R strain of Drosophila melanogaster, they show quantitative differences in lectin-induced agglutination. Line 1 cells were least agglutinable with both lectins. All three cell lines reached maximum agglutination with concanavalin A concentrations at 25 μg/ml, but the agglutination response to wheat germ agglutinin was biphasic such that an initial rapid increase in agglutination with concentrations up to 25 μg/ml was followed by slower agglutination above this concentration. Cells of lines 1 and 2 from ten-day old cultures exhibited greater lectin-induced agglutination than cells from three-day old cultures. Age-dependent differences were not found for line 3 cells which gave maximum agglutination responses in both young and old cultures. Cell agglutination by concanavalin A was almost completely inhibited by pretreatment of the lectin with methyl-α-d-mannopyranoside, but preincubation of wheat germ agglutinin with N-acetyl-d-glucosamine caused only partial blockage. Lectin-induced agglutination was not reversible by treatment with the monosaccharide inhibitors. These observations have been discussed with reference to the origin of the three cell lines and their cell surface properties.     

Glycoproteins in the whorls of membrane produced by oligodendroglia in culture

Two glycoproteins of 99 kDa and 77 kDa which exhibit intense binding to wheat germ agglutinin have been purified from the whorls of membrane produced by oligodendroglia in culture. The whorls of membrane were isolated by gradient centrifugation from purified bovine oligodendroglia maintained in culture. The two glycoproteins were solubilized from the membranes using a non-ionic detergent and purified by Sephadex LH-60 chromatography, wheat germ agglutinin affinity chromatography, and SDS-polyacrylamide pore gradient gel electrophoresis. HPLC peptide mapping of the 99-kDa and 77-kDa glycoproteins revealed structural differences between the two proteins. Peptide mapping suggested that the 99-kDa glycoprotein from the whorls of membrane may be homologous to that from the plasma membranes. The 77-kDa glycoproteins from both sets of membrane may also be structurally related. Lectin binding studies showed that both glycoproteins from the whorls of membrane bound to wheat germ agglutinin, succinylated wheat germ agglutinin, concanavalin A, and lentil lectin, indicating the presence of high mannose and hybrid type oligosaccharide side-chains.     

Qualitative and quantitative interactions of lectins with untreated and neuraminidase-treated normal, wild-type, and temperature-sensitive polyoma-transformed fibroblasts.

The lectin receptors of confluently grown hamster BHK, wild type polyoma virus transformed PyBHK, and temperature-sensitive polyoma transformed ts3-PyBHK fibroblasts were investigated using cell agglutination, quantitative (125I)lectin binding, and ferritin-lectin labeling. PyBHK and permissively grown ts3-PyBHK cells agglutinated more strongly with Ricinus communis I agglutinin (RCA-I)compared to BHK and nonpermissively grown ts3-PyBHK, although saturation binding of (125I)RCA-I to these cells at 4 degrees resulted in a twofold difference in lectin-binding sites on BHK and nonpermissively grown ts3-PyBHK cells (1.0-1.3 x 10 7 sites/cell) compared to PyBHK and permissively grown ts3-PyBHK (0.4-0.6 x 10 7 sites/cell). These cells bound equivalent amounts of (125I)concanavalin A (0.8-1 x 10 7 sites/cell) and (125I)wheat germ agglutinin (1-2.2 x 10 7 sites/cell). Under these binding conditions little endocytosis occurred, as judged by the subsequent release of greater than 90% cell-bound (125I)RCA-I by the RCA-I inhibitor lactose and localization of ferritin-RCA-I exclusively to the extracellular plasma membrane surface. However, if the binding is performed at 22 degrees, only 50% of the bound lectin can be removed by lactose, and ferritin-RCA-I is localized inside the cell within endocytotic vesicles. The relative mobility of RCA-I receptors was examined on ts3-PyBHK cells by the ability of ferritin-RCA-I to induce clustering of its receptors at 22 degrees. RCA-I receptors on permissively grown ts3-PyBHK cells appeared to be more mobile than on nonpermissively grown cells. BHK and PyBHK cells were treated with neuraminidase, and the resulting enzyme-treated cells were assayed for lectin agglutinability and quantitative binding of RCA-I, concanavalin A, and wheat germ agglutinin. Neuraminidase treatment resulted in decreased concanavalin A and wheat germ agglutinability and a slight increase in RCA-I agglutinability. The enzyme-treated BHK and PyBHK cells bound less (125I)wheat germ agglutinin (2.8 x 10 6 and 2.2 x 10 6 sites/cell, respectively) and 2.5 and 6.2 times more (125I)RCA-I (2.5-3 x 10 7) and 3.5-4 x 10 7 sites/per cell, respectively). There was no change in the number of concanavalin A binding sites after neuraminidase treatment. The increase in RCA-I binding sites approximated the decrease in wheat germ agglutinin binding sites indicating that the predominant penultimate oligosaccharide residue to sialic acid on these cells is D-Gal.     

Schistosoma mansoni: radiometric assay of lectin binding specificities of the major egg glycoprotein and its carbohydrate-rich fragment

The binding by lectins of the Schistosoma mansoni major egg glycoprotein and of a carbohydrate-rich fragment which is serologically cross-reactive with it was studied. The major egg glycoprotein was purified from a crude soluble egg antigen by a succession of affinity chromatography procedures on concanavalin A-sepharose and by ion-exchange chromatography. The carbohydrate-rich fragment was isolated by ultrafiltration of the crude glycoprotein fraction initially obtained from the crude soluble egg antigens. The major egg glycoprotein and the carbohydrate-rich fragment contain 77 and 92.5% carbohydrate, respectively. When radioiodinated and run on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, each of them exhibited a single peak with respective Rf values of 0.33 and 1.0, and their respective molecular weights were 70K and 10-13K. The binding of the radioiodinated major egg glycoprotein and the carbohydrate-rich fragment by peanut agglutinin, Ricinus communis agglutinin-60, wheat germ agglutinin, and lotus agglutinin was studied by double diffusion in agar, and by a radiometric solid-phase assay in which the lectins were used to coat microtiter plates. The latter assay was employed to determine the specificity of the binding by inhibition with the specific sugars. Both the major egg glycoprotein and the carbohydrate-rich fragment bound specifically to concanavalin A columns as indicated by their isolation procedure. They also bound specifically to peanut agglutinin, R. communis agglutinin 60, and lotus agglutinin, while binding by wheat germ agglutinin appeared not to be specific.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Regulation of Myelination: Biosynthesis of the Major Myelin Glycoprotein by Schwann Cells in the Presence and Absence of Myelin Assembly

Schwann cell biosynthesis of the major myelin glycoprotein, P0, was investigated in the crush-injured adult rat sciatic nerve, where there is myelin assembly, and in the permanently transected nerve, where there is no myelin assembly. Endoneurial fractions from desheathed rat sciatic nerves distal to the crush were compared with similar fractions from the permanently transected nerves at 7, 14, 21, 28, and 35 days after injury. The Schwann cell expression of this asparagine-linked glycoprotein was evaluated after sodium dodecyl sulfate-pore gradient electrophoresis by Coomassie Blue and silver stain and by autoradiography after direct overlay of radioiodinated lectins [wheat germ agglutinin, gorse agglutinin, and concanavalin A (Con A)]. As evaluated by these parameters, the concentration of P0 after crush decreased and subsequently increased as a function of time after injury, corresponding to the events of demyelination and remyelination. After permanent transection, the P0 concentration decreased following the same time course found after crush. At subsequent time points, P0 could not be detected with Coomassie Blue stain, silver stain, or wheat germ agglutinin. Both gorse agglutinin and Con A, however, showed binding to P0. Radioactive precursor incorporation studies with [3H]fucose or [3H]-mannose into endoneurial slices at 35 days posttransection revealed active oligosaccharide processing of P0 glycoprotein by Schwann cells in this permanent transection model. Compared with other Schwann cell glycoproteins in the transected nerve, the highest level of incorporation of [3H]mannose was found in P0 which accounted for 42.7% of the incorporated label. In contrast, incorporation of [3H]mannose into endoneurial slices at 35 days after crush accounted for only 13.3% in P0. In addition, higher levels of Con A binding were observed in P0 in the transected nerve compared with the contralateral control or the crushed nerve. Both the [3H]fucose incorporation and gorse agglutinin binding to P0 in the transected nerve suggest posttranslational processing of this glycoprotein in the Golgi apparatus; however, the absence of wheat germ agglutinin binding, the high level of mannose incorporation, and the high level of binding by Con A imply that additional processing steps are required prior to its assembly into myelin.     

Analysis of lectin-specific cell surface glycoprotein on neuroblastoma cells

The binding sites for the lectins wheat germ agglutinin, Ricinus communis agglutinin and concanavalin A on mouse neuroblastoma cell membranes were identified using SDS-gel electrophoresis in combination with fluorescent lectins. Ricinus communis agglutinin and wheat germ agglutinin were found to bind almost exclusively to a single polypeptide with an apparent molecular weight of 30 000. Concanavalin A labeled over 20 different polypeptides, most with molecular weights greater than 50 000. However, when the neuroblastoma cells were treated with concanavalin A so as to internalize all the concanavalin A binding sites visible at the level of the fluorescent microscope and the purified plasma membranes analyzed for their concanavalin A binding polypeptides, only four of the 20 glycopolypeptides were missing or significantly reduced in amount. Thus, these four high molecular weight concanavalin A-binding polypeptides appear to be the major cell surface receptors for concanavalin A. Binding studies with iodinated concanavalin A indicated that these polypeptides represented the high affinity concanavalin A binding sites $\text{K}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>d</mtext>}}\text{= 2 · 10}{}^{\mathrm{?7}}\text{M}$). Low affinity concanavalin A binding sites were present on the cell surface after internalization of high affinity concanavalin A binding sites.     

Effects of wheat germ agglutinin and concanavalin A on parameters of highly purified sodium-potassium adenosine triphosphatases from Squalus acanthias and Electrophorus electricus.

The effects of two lectins, wheat germ agglutinin and concanavalin A, were studied on a variety of parameters of two highly purified (Na+ + K+)-ATPases (ATP phosphohydrolase, EC 3.6.1.3), from the rectal salt gland of Squalus acanthias and from the electroplax of Electrophorus electricus. Both lectins agglutinated the rectal gland enzyme equally, but wheat germ agglutinin inhibited (Na+ + K+)-ATPase activity much more. The electroplax enzyme was only marginally agglutinated and inhibited by the lectins. Neuraminidase treatment of the rectal gland (Na+ + K+)-ATPase had no effect on germ agglutinin inhibition. The inhibition of the rectal gland (Na+ + K+)-ATPase by wheat germ agglutinin could be reversed by N,N'-diacetylchitobiose, which has a high affinity for wheat germ agglutinin. Neither ouabain inhibition nor ouabain binding to the rectal gland enzyme was affected by wheat germ agglutinin. The p-nitrophenylphosphatase activity of the rectal gland enzyme was not inhibited by wheat germ agglutinin. Na+-ATPase activity, which reflects ATP binding and phosphorylation at the substrate site was inhibited by wheat germ agglutinin and this inhibition was reversed by potassium. Evidence is cited (Pennington, J. and Hokin, L.E., in preparation) that the inhibition of the (Na+ + K+)-ATPase by wheat germ agglutinin is due to binding to the glycoprotein subunit.     

Glycoprotein characteristics of the sodium channel saxitoxin-binding component from mammalian sarcolemma

The saxitoxin-binding component of the excitable membrane sodium channel exhibits glycoprotein characteristics as evidenced by its specific interaction with various agarose-immobilized lectins. The detergent-solubilized saxitoxin-binding component interacts quantitatively with immobilized wheat germ agglutinin and concanavalin A and fractionally with immobilized Lens culinaris hemagglutinin and Ricinus communis agglutinin. These lectins preferentially bind $\text{N-}\text{acetylglucosamine}$ and sialic acid (wheat germ agglutinin), mannose (concanavalin A and Lens cunilaris and galactose (Ricinus communis). Removal of terminal sialic acid residues by neuraminidase markedly decreases binding to immobilized wheat germ agglutinin but uncovers sites capable of interacting with lectins specific for galactose and $\text{N-}\text{acetylgalactosamine}$. $\text{β-N-}\text{acetylglucosaminidase}$, an exoglycosidase has no effect on the binding of the channel protein to wheat germ agglutinin. Similarly, phospholipase C has no effect on binding of the solubilized toxin binding component to this lectin. Neither wheat germ agglutinin nor concanavalin A free in solution alters the number of toxin binding sites or their affinity for toxin. The sodium channel saxitoxin-binding component appears to be a glycoprotein containing terminal sialic acid residues and internal mannose, galactose, $\text{N-}\text{acetylglucosamine}$, and $\text{N-}\text{acetylgalactosamine}$ residues. The toxin binding site is spatially separated from the binding sites for the lectins studied. The effect of these sugar moieties must be considered when evaluating the biophysical parameters of the sodium channel.     

Analysis of cell surface glycoprotein changes related to hematopoietic differentiation

A high-resolution technique has been used to study differentiation-related and leukemia-associated glycoproteins. Cells are labeled with the membrane-impermeable probe sulfo-N-hydroxysuccinimidyl-biotin. Nonionic detergent extracts are subjected to affinity chromatography on a number of immobilized lectins and after polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS-PAGE) and western transfer, the biotin-labeled glycoproteins are visualized by using avidin-horseradish peroxidase and 4-chloronaphthol. With the aid of the lectins concanavalin A, Dolichos biflouros agglutinin, Lens culinaris hemagglutinin, peanut agglutinin, pokeweed mitogen, Ricinus communus agglutinin I, soybean agglutinin, Ulex europeus agglutinin I (UEA), and wheat germ agglutinin, each purifies different glycoprotein subsets from the same cell type. Mature cells of distinct hematopoietic lineages differ considerably in their cell surface glycoprotein patterns. This technique was used to analyze the glycoproteins of human leukemia cells before and after the induction of differentiation. K562 cells differentiated along different lineages after treatment with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, sodium butyrate, dimethyl sulfoxide, or hemin. Limited specific alterations were observed with a number of lectins when K562 erythroleukemia cells were induced to differentiate. Among these, a number of bands were identified that were either lost or appeared after induction of differentiation with all four agents. In contrast, the glycoproteins bound by UEA were drastically diminished after induction of differentiation, and the remaining UEA-bound glycoproteins bore little resemblance to those of the cells before treatment. This high-resolution technique may be useful as a general method for the examination of cell surface glycoprotein differences. Once specific glycoprotein alterations are detected, lectin affinity chromatography and SDS-PAGE allow purification of antigens for the production of monoclonal antibodies.     

Wheat germ agglutinin inhibits basal- and stimulated-adenylate cyclase activity as well as the binding of [3H] caerulein to rat pancreatic plasma membranes

Wheat germ agglutinin, but not concanavalin A or soybean lectin, inhibited the basal-and stimulated-adenylate cyclase activity which was present in a plasma membrane preparation from the rat pancreas. The inhibition by wheat germ agglutinin was rapid and sustained. It was of the non-competitive type and never exceeded 20% for Gpp (NH) p- and NaF-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity. The inhibition of secretin-stimulated activity was also non-competitive but more pronounced (57% inhibition at a wheat germ agglutinin concentration of 20 microgram/ml). For the C-terminal octapeptide of cholecystokinin-pancreozymin (OC-PZ)-stimulated cyclase, the inhibition amounted to 68% and was of a mixed type (both competitive and non-competitive). This last observation might be explained by the competitive inhibition exerted by wheat germ agglutinin on the binding of peptides of the OC-PZ family to their membrane specific receptors. The various inhibitory effects of wheat germ agglutinin were completely suppressed by incubating the membranes in the presence of ovomucoid, a N-acetyl-D-glucosamine rich glycoprotein. The possible functional implication of these results is discussed.     

几种植物生殖细胞质膜表面的凝集素受体荧光标记

为进一步探讨从生殖细胞到精子的发育过程中细胞质膜表面凝集素受体的可能变化,及其与两类对凝集素标记有不同结果的精子的关系,用异硫氰酸荧光素标记的伴刀豆凝集素(Con A)、麦芽凝集素(WGA)和大豆凝集素(SBA)对蚕豆(Vicia faba L．)、鸢尾(Iris tectorium Maxim．)和朱顶红(Hippeastrum vittatum Herb．)的生殖细胞质膜表面的凝集素受体进行标记。结果显示：在不同植物中均有部分生殖细胞不能被凝集素探针标记,且在保持尾状形态的生殖细胞的表面发现有凝集素受体的极性分布。这可能是导致部分精子表面不能被同种凝集素标记的重要原因。此外,同一种凝集素受体在不同物种的生殖细胞上分布不一致,不同的凝集素受体在同一种植物的生殖细胞上的分布模式亦有不同。在蚕豆和鸢尾的生殖细胞表面均有这三种凝集素的受体。在朱顶红生殖细胞的表面有前两种凝集素的受体,分布比较均一,但是没有大豆凝集素的受体。此外,在具尾生殖细胞表面发现有凝集素受体极性分布的现象,为探讨精细胞功能及其表面糖蛋白分布的可能差异提供了重要启示。