Jack fruit lectin binding pattern in carcinoma of the uterine cervix.

A lectin was isolated and purified from the seeds of Jack Fruit (Artocarpus integrifolia) using a column of immobilized N-acetyl D-Galactosamine. The Jack Fruit lectin (JFL) was conjugated to horse radish peroxidase (HRP). The purified conjugate was used to study the binding properties of tissues from carcinomas of the uterine cervix. The binding to cancer tissues was compared with that of normal controls. The carcinomatous cells showed varying degrees of binding towards JFL in contrast to normal controls which generally had uniform binding. The nature and intensity of binding of the lectin with the cancer tissues suggest that this lectin may be used as a diagnostic marker in carcinoma of uterine cervix.