Purification and some properties of a lectin from the fruit juice of the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum)

Abstract

In the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) plant, the fruit juice was found to be the richest source of agglutinating activity. The lectin responsible could be inhibited by oligomers of N-acetylglucosamine, and this property was exploited to purify the lectin by affinity adsorption on trypsin-treated erythrocytes. The lectin is a glycoprotein that cross-reacts immunologically with the lectin from Datura stramonium (thorn-apple).