Plant Lectin on Blood Agglutination

Lectin is a protein that is ordinarily lay out in certain plants such(prenominal) as grains (wheat), legumes (soybeans and peanuts), and also contribute be rig in potato, tomato, eggplant and pepper. It is found to be toxic, especially if the food containing it is undercooked. It draws legal injury to the gut surround in the stomach. Lectins toxicity may even cause rapid death.Lectin is a glycoprotein. As a glycoprotein, it is capable of stuffing to carbohydrate. It tends to bind to carbohydrates in special(prenominal) and reversible manner. It is a protein that has binding site specific to carbohydrate. Because of this ability of lectin, it can cause agglutination of red tune cells. It does so by moveion with the scratch moieties of the cell wall leading to the clumping in concert of the cells.In daub agglutination by lectin, its combat-ready sites be the ones that bind to the slit moieties be in the cell wall of the red origin cells These active sites are consists of certain amino acid residues. It was suggested that in that location are two or more than amino acid residues that are present in the active site of lectin (cited in Sharon, 2007). Some of these amino acid forms henry bonds with the hydroxyl group of the sugar or carbohydrate moiety.The other amino acids interact hydrophobically. Aside from these interactions, other openhearteds of interactions such as coordination with the metal, like interaction with the iron commingle of the hemoglobin in the red blood cells, and electrostatic interaction might cash in ones chips as well. Further interaction of these active sites to other carbohydrate part of the blood cells results to large mass, then the clumping of cells occurs.Specificity of lectin towards carbohydrates depends on the kind of amino acid present in its active site. This made plant lectin found its expedientness in the field of medicine. virtuoso application of plant lectin is in determine blood group. Lectin can aggl utinate specific types of erythrocytes. Different sources of lectin may have diametrical active sites, therefore may visit the kind of carbohydrate it binds with.Plant lectins, notwithstanding of the danger it may pose in our health, can be still useful in our life. As the study and look on lectin progresses, more benefits that we can descend from these compounds are revealed.ReferenceSharon, N. (2007). Lectins Carbohydrate-specific Reagents and Biological cite Molecules. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 282, 5, 2753-2764. Retrieved December 9, 2007 from, http//www.jbc.org/cgi/ issue/full/282/5/2753