Maackia amurensis lectin binding in developing rat retina.

The developmental changes in the binding of Maackia amurensis lectin, specific for sialic acid alpha 2,3 galactose sequence, to the rat retina was investigated using the avidin-biotinylated peroxidase method. The lectin bound to the surfaces of photoreceptor outer segments from postnatal day 16 (P16), whereas it had bound to the other retinal layers from P14. The intense labelings of the outer segments were interspersed with unstained portions, which may correspond to cone photoreceptors. These results confirm that the sialic acid residues on the terminus of carbohydrate chains increase at P16 and mask the beta-galactose residues around rod outer segments.