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PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
3
pubmed:dateCreated
1997-2-13
pubmed:databankReference
pubmed:abstractText
Galectins are members of a genetically related family of beta-galactoside-binding lectins. At least eight distinct mammalian galectins have been identified. More distantly related, but still conserving amino acid residues critical for carbohydrate-binding, are galectins in chicken, eel, frog, nematode, and sponge. Here we report that galectins are also expressed in a species of fungus, the inky cap mushroom, Coprinus cinereus. Two dimeric galectins are expressed during fruiting body formation which are 83% identical to each other in amino acid sequence and conserve all key residues shared by members of the galectin family. Unlike most galectins, these have no N-terminal post-translational modification and no cysteine residues. We expressed one of these as a recombinant protein and studied its carbohydrate-binding specificity using a novel nonradioactive assay. Binding specificity has been well studied for a number of other galectins, and like many of these, the recombinant C. cinereus galectin shows particular affinity for blood group A structures. These results demonstrate not only that the galectin gene family is evolutionarily much older than previously realized but also that fine specificity for complex saccharide structures has been conserved. Such conservation implies that galectins evolved to perform very basic cellular functions, presumably by interaction with glycoconjugates bearing complex lactoside carbohydrates resembling blood group A.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Jan
pubmed:issn
0021-9258
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
17
pubmed:volume
272
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
1514-21
pubmed:dateRevised
2007-11-14
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1997
pubmed:articleTitle
Fungal galectins, sequence and specificity of two isolectins from Coprinus cinereus.
pubmed:affiliation
Departments of Anatomy and Psychiatry, Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute, Center for Neurobiology and Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, California 94143-0984, USA. cooper@cgl.ucsf.edu
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S., Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't