Cell surface glycosylation changes accompanying immortalization and transformation of normal human mammary epithelial cells.

Fluorescent lectin binding to cell surfaces was quantitatively analysed by flow cytometry on mortal human breast epithelial cells MCF-10M, the immortalized cell line MCF-10A derived from MCF-10M and sublines of MCF-10A transfected with the neomycin resistance gene (MCF-10Aneo), the c-Ha-ras protooncogene (MCF-10AneoN), or transfected and transformed with the c-Ha-ras activated oncogene (MCF-10AneoT). Immortal MCF-10A cells bound 10-fold more peanut agglutinin (PNA) and soy bean agglutinin (SBA) than did MCF-10M cells. Transformed MCF-10AneoT cells bound approximately ten times more PNA than did non-transformed cells transfected with protooncogene (MCF-10AneoN). Treatment of the transfectants with neuraminidase abrogated the differences in PNA-binding and reduced the differences in SBA binding. SDS-PAGE separation of PNA binding glycoproteins revealed different patterns for all MCF-10A derived sublines.