Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Antimicrobial Proteins01:23

Antimicrobial Proteins

13.0K
Antimicrobial proteins are important components of the immune system. They aid the body in combating pathogens by either killing them directly or hindering their replication processes. Four main types of antimicrobial substances are interferons, the complement system, iron-binding proteins, and antimicrobial proteins.
Interferons
Interferons (IFNs) are proteins produced by lymphocytes, macrophages, and fibroblasts infected with viruses. While IFNs cannot prevent viruses from entering and...
13.0K
Selectins01:25

Selectins

4.1K
Cell adhesion is  an essential aspect of multicellularity. While stable cell interactions usually occur between cells of the same type, transient cell interactions occur between cells of different tissue types, such as between neutrophils and endothelial cells. Selectins are one class of cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) that bind carbohydrate ligands to form transient cell adhesion. They are rod-like proteins with a long extracellular part of variable length ending with the lectin domain,...
4.1K
Integrins01:10

Integrins

5.2K
Animal and protozoan cells do not have cell walls to help maintain shape and provide structural stability. Instead, these eukaryotic cells secrete a sticky mass of carbohydrates and proteins into the spaces between adjacent cells. This network of proteins and molecules is called an extracellular matrix or ECM.
Some ECM proteins assemble into a basement membrane to which the remaining components adhere. Proteoglycans typically form the bulk of the ECM while fibrous proteins, like collagen,...
5.2K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Chemical Probes to Reveal the Assembly and Dynamics of Wall Teichoic Acids.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2026
Same author

Aerocavin Is an Antibiotic with Potent and Specific Anti-Neisserial Activity.

ACS infectious diseases·2026
Same author

Exome sequencing directly implicates 68 genes in inflammatory bowel disease.

medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences·2026
Same author

An infant nasal microbial gene atlas uncovers intervention-driven microbiome shifts and salt-resistant pathogen expansion.

Cell host & microbe·2026
Same author

It's not just snot! : Mucus: Nature's Multifaceted Secretion.

EMBO reports·2026
Same author

Aerocavin is an antibiotic with potent and specific anti-Neisserial activity.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same journal

Chlorinated VSLSs Surpass HCFCs in CFC-11-Equivalent Emissions for Ozone Layer Depletion in China.

Nature communications·2026
Same journal

Author Correction: Charge transfer in triphenylamine-tetrazine covalent organic frameworks for solar-driven hydrogen peroxide production.

Nature communications·2026
Same journal

Vegetation browning patterns under compound soil and atmospheric dryness in northern permafrost ecosystems.

Nature communications·2026
Same journal

Voltage imaging of CA1 pyramidal cells and SST+ interneurons reveals stability and plasticity mechanisms of spatial firing.

Nature communications·2026
Same journal

Radical-omics reveals the hydrogen-abstraction pathway of isoprene oxidation.

Nature communications·2026
Same journal

Toughening elastomer via sequentially activated multi-pathway energy dissipation.

Nature communications·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 15, 2026

Synthesis of an Intein-mediated Artificial Protein Hydrogel
15:06

Synthesis of an Intein-mediated Artificial Protein Hydrogel

Published on: January 27, 2014

12.7K

Intelectin-2 is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial lectin.

Amanda E Dugan1, Deepsing Syangtan1, Eric B Nonnecke2

  • 1Department of Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.

Nature Communications
|January 13, 2026
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Mammalian intelectin-2 binds and crosslinks mucins and microbes. This lectin exhibits antimicrobial activity, crucial for mucosal defense and regulating microbial colonization.

More Related Videos

Screening Foodstuffs for Class 1 Integrons and Gene Cassettes
09:37

Screening Foodstuffs for Class 1 Integrons and Gene Cassettes

Published on: June 19, 2015

9.4K
Assays for Studying the Role of Vitronectin in Bacterial Adhesion and Serum Resistance
10:55

Assays for Studying the Role of Vitronectin in Bacterial Adhesion and Serum Resistance

Published on: October 16, 2018

8.5K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jan 15, 2026

Synthesis of an Intein-mediated Artificial Protein Hydrogel
15:06

Synthesis of an Intein-mediated Artificial Protein Hydrogel

Published on: January 27, 2014

12.7K
Screening Foodstuffs for Class 1 Integrons and Gene Cassettes
09:37

Screening Foodstuffs for Class 1 Integrons and Gene Cassettes

Published on: June 19, 2015

9.4K
Assays for Studying the Role of Vitronectin in Bacterial Adhesion and Serum Resistance
10:55

Assays for Studying the Role of Vitronectin in Bacterial Adhesion and Serum Resistance

Published on: October 16, 2018

8.5K

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Immunology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Mammals maintain native microbiota at colonization sites.
  • Lectins at mucosal barriers influence microbial populations, but their roles are often unclear.
  • Intelectins are found in chordates, but their functions remain poorly characterized.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the functional roles of mammalian intelectin-2 (mItln2 and hItln2) at mucosal barriers.
  • To determine the mechanisms by which intelectins interact with mammalian and microbial components.
  • To elucidate the antimicrobial and defensive functions of intelectin-2 in mucosal immunity.

Main Methods:

  • Carbohydrate recognition assays to assess binding to mucins and microbial glycans.
  • Microbial interaction studies with native microbial communities and isolates.
  • Viability assays to determine the impact of intelectin binding on microbial cells.
  • Calcium-dependency studies for glycan binding.

Main Results:

  • Mouse intelectin-2 (mItln2) and human intelectin-2 (hItln2) engage and crosslink mucins through carbohydrate recognition.
  • Both lectins recognize and bind to various microbes, including gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria.
  • Intelectin binding to microbes leads to a loss of viability, while human cells remain unaffected.
  • Glycan binding is calcium-coordinated, enabling interaction with both host and microbial carbohydrate residues.

Conclusions:

  • Mammalian intelectin-2 plays a critical antimicrobial role in mucosal defense.
  • Intelectin-2 functions both offensively (microbial killing) and defensively (mucus crosslinking).
  • These dual roles are essential for regulating microbial colonization at mucosal surfaces.