A Glucose binding lectin from Leucaena leucocephala seeds and its mitogenic activity against human lymphocytes

Lectins are a specialized group of proteins with immense biological properties and applications. This study describes the purification and characterization of a lectin from Leucaena leucocephala seeds, a plant belonging to the Fabaceae family. Leucaena leucocephala lectin (LLL) was purified by a two-step purification method involving DEAE-cellulose anion exchange chromatography and Sephadex G-75 size exclusion chromatography. The isolated lectin displayed a high haemagglutination titre upon treatment with rabbit erythrocytes. SDS-PAGE and Reverse-Phase High performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) analysis experimentally revealed the presence of three bands corresponding to 37, 27 and 20 kDa indicating the presence of isolectins. Periodic Acid Schiff's (PAS) staining of LLL confirmed the presence of glycoprotein. Various biochemical parameters were analysed to study its effect on the haemagglutination activity. Sugar inhibition studies experimentally revealed that Glucose was the most potent inhibitor. Fluorescence spectrometric analysis of LLL and Glucose indicated a strong interaction with an association constant of 0.159 × 10³ M^-1. Circular Dichroism spectroscopy indicated a higher alpha helical content (25.27%). LLL was observed to possess mitogenic activity against Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). The present investigation reports the isolation of a novel lectin from this plant which could contribute towards the diagnostic studies of certain diseases and for its therapeutic potential.