Lectin binding in the choroid plexuses of the chick embryo

In the present research we have studied the distribution and the changes of the oligosaccharidic component of the glycoconjugates during the development of the choroids plexuses of the 3rd ventricle and of the lateral ventricles in chick embryos and in 3-day-old chicken. For this purpose a battery of seven horseradish peroxidase labelled lectins was used. Lectin histochemistry has shown that starting from early stages of choroid plexuses development, all its components, epithelial cells, mesenchyme and endothelial cells of the capillary vessels, show lectin reactivity. In the present paper the possible role played by the sugar residues of the glycoconjugates in the apical portion and in the cytoplasm of the choroid epithelial cells and in the basement membrane is discussed.