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Related Experiment Videos

Structural basis of lectin-carbohydrate recognition

W I Weis1, K Drickamer

  • 1Department of Structural Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, California 94305, USA.

Annual Review of Biochemistry
|January 1, 1996
PubMed
Summary

Lectins recognize cell surface sugars across bacteria, animals, and plants. Structural studies reveal conserved mechanisms for sugar binding, involving hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic packing, crucial for diverse biological functions.

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Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Structural Biology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Lectins mediate crucial biological processes by recognizing cell surface sugars.
  • These include bacterial toxins, animal cell interactions, and plant defense mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the structural basis of selective sugar recognition by lectins.
  • To understand the evolutionary convergence of sugar-binding mechanisms across different organisms.

Main Methods:

  • X-ray crystallography was employed to determine the structures of various lectins.
  • Analysis focused on the interactions between lectins and different sugar moieties.

Main Results:

  • Conserved features in lectin sugar recognition mechanisms were identified, despite independent evolution.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Low-affinity monosaccharide binding sites utilize hydrogen bonding and van der Waals packing.
  • Oligomerization of lectin polypeptides significantly enhances affinity and specificity for oligosaccharides.

    • Conclusions:

    • Lectins exhibit adaptable binding strategies for monosaccharides and oligosaccharides.
    • Oligomeric structures enable lectins to distinguish polysaccharide arrays and crosslink glycoconjugates, highlighting their functional versatility.