Cell surface carbohydrates and cell recognition in Dictyostelium.

Carbohydrate ligands and complementary receptors have been detected on the surface of Dictyostelium cells, using lectins, monoclonal antibodies, and immobilized sugar probes. They have been implicated in cell recognition processes, such as phagocytosis and intercellular adhesion, and could act as membrane signals for differentiation. Specific glycoproteins have been proposed to mediate intercellular adhesion in Dictyostelium discoideum and Polysphondylium pallidum and to account for the species-specificity of adhesion displayed by these species. Recent studies with the inhibitor of N-glycosylation, tunicamycin, and with glycosylation defective mutants suggest that some carbohydrate groups in these glycoproteins play a role in cell adhesion.