Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, CSKHPKV, Palampur 176 062, India.
J Biosci. 2021;46(4). doi: 10.1007/s12038-021-00225-8.
Lectins are widely distributed proteins having ability of binding selectively and reversibly with carbohydrates moieties and glycoconjugates. Although lectins have been reported from different biological sources, the legume lectins are the best-characterized family of plant lectins. Legume lectins are a large family of homologous proteins with considerable similarity in amino acid sequence and their tertiary structures. Despite having strong sequence conservation, these lectins show remarkable variability in carbohydrate specificity and quaternary structures. The ability of legume lectins in recognizing glycans and glycoconjugates on cells and other intracellular structures make them a valuable research tool in glycomic research. Due to variability in binding with glycans, glycoconjugates and multiple biological functions, legume lectins are the subject of intense research for their diverse application in different fields such as glycobiology, biomedical research and crop improvement. The present review specially focuses on structural and functional characteristics of legume lectins along with their potential areas of application.
凝集素是广泛分布的具有选择性和可逆结合碳水化合物部分和糖缀合物的能力的蛋白质。虽然已从不同的生物来源中报道了凝集素，但豆科植物凝集素是最具特征的植物凝集素家族。豆科植物凝集素是同源蛋白的大家族，在氨基酸序列和三级结构上具有相当大的相似性。尽管具有很强的序列保守性，但这些凝集素在碳水化合物特异性和四级结构上表现出显著的可变性。豆科植物凝集素识别细胞和其他细胞内结构上的聚糖和糖缀合物的能力使它们成为糖组学研究中的宝贵研究工具。由于与聚糖、糖缀合物的结合以及多种生物学功能的可变性，豆科植物凝集素因其在不同领域的多种应用而成为研究的热点，如糖生物学、生物医学研究和作物改良。本综述特别关注豆科植物凝集素的结构和功能特性及其潜在的应用领域。
