tomato lectin

##Key Takeaways:

Tomato Lectin: An Overview

Tomato lectin is a type of protein found in tomatoes that has gained attention for its potential health benefits. In this section, we’ll provide an overview of tomato lectin, including its properties and potential applications.

With its unique molecular structure and ability to bind to certain sugars, tomato lectin has been studied for its potential use in medicine and food production. Let’s explore the properties of this fascinating protein and its potential impact on various fields.

Properties of Tomato Lectin

Tomato Lectin is a special protein. It’s found in tomatoes, and it has a molecule weight of 120 kDa. It has 2 different subunits, an α-subunit and a β-subunit. It has a hexameric structure made up of these two types of subunits.

It binds to glycoproteins and glycophorins. This makes it able to detect certain sugars and carbohydrates on cell surfaces. It especially likes N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) residues. This means it’s great for studying glycobiology.

Tomato Lectin has strong thermal stability and pH tolerance. This lets it be used in a range of applications. Research shows that it can also cause cell death in tumors, without harming normal cells.

It was discovered by Professor Zen-Ichiro Takasaki at Kyoto University in Japan in 1978.

Applications of Tomato Lectin

Tomato lectin has a diverse range of applications that have been extensively explored, making it an important molecule in various fields of study. This section will provide an overview of some of the ways in which tomato lectin is used, including:

• its binding abilities with glycophorin and Tamm-Horsfall glycoprotein
• its use in labeling vascular endothelium in rodents
• its ability to serve as a useful marker of blood vessels and microglial cells in neuroscience research
• its utility in tracing neovascular development

Binding with Glycophorin and Tamm-Horsfall Glycoprotein

Tomato lectin is a protein found in tomatoes. It has an incredible capacity to connect with glycophorin and Tamm-Horsfall glycoprotein. This property is noteworthy in research, like neuroscience or pathology.

Researchers need to evaluate the sugar specificity and blood group specificity of tomato lectin. This protein binds with different sugar residues, such as N-acetylglucosamine, galactose, mannose, fucose, and N-acetylgalactosamine residues. Tomato lectin has blood group specificity, binding more to type A erythrocytes than other groups.

Tomato lectin could be used to label blood vessels or microglial cells in neuroscience research. This could help to get more in-depth information about cell function in the brain. However, researchers need to be careful about the concentrations and stability of LEL – tomato lectin. Therefore, while tomato lectin is a great research tool, it is essential to use it properly and take its unique binding properties into account.

Labeling of Vascular Endothelium in Rodents

Tomato lectin is a practical way to label the vascular endothelium of rodents. It binds to particular carbohydrates on the endothelial cell surface. This provides a fluorescent signal that enables us to view and spot blood vessels. This labeling technique has several applications, like tracing neovascular development and spotting microglial cells and blood vessels in neuroscience research.

Tomato lectin has varying sugar and blood group specificity. For example, LEL-Texas Red is a combination of tomato lectin and Texas Red dye. This is stable at -20°C, when diluted in PBS or a buffered solution, for a minimum of one year.

However, tomato lectin may not show the complete picture of blood vessel architecture. Because it only binds to certain carbohydrate structures. Thus, it’s crucial to bear in mind any differences in sugar specificity and binding affinity between different types of tomato lectin, when analyzing results.

Marker of Blood Vessels and Microglial Cells in Neuroscience Research

Tomato Lectin is a marker of blood vessels and microglial cells in neuroscience research. Its superior properties and diverse applications make it widely used.

The following table shows the properties, applications, and Lycopersicon esculentum (LEL)-Texas Red:

Properties	Applications	LEL-Texas Red
Highly specific binding with glycophorin & high affinity towards Tamm-Horsfall glycoprotein	Traces blood vessels accurately, labels vascular endothelium in rodents, & highlights structure, function & pathology of microglial cells	Commercially available, sugar & blood group specificity, & high stability under physiological conditions

Tomato Lectin’s capability of tracing neovascular development, monitoring angiogenesis, & inflammation inside the brain has been proven effective. It helps understand cerebrovascular diseases caused by damage to the brain’s blood vessels. Tomato lectin helps make growing blood vessels exciting!

Tracing of Neovascular Development

Tomato lectin, aka Lycopersicon esculentum Lectin (LEL), is a powerful tool in neuroscience research. It marks blood vessels and microglial cells. Researchers use multiphoton microscopy to trace neovascular development with LEL-Texas Red. This helps to identify growth, progression, and remodeling of capillaries from arterioles or venules. This technique is useful for studying blood vessel formation in adult brains. It can also identify disease processes related to brain vasculature and evaluating treatments for various neurological disorders.

Multiphoton microscopy was used to record findings in Column 1 and Column 2 of a table. Tomato Lectin (LEL) was the lectin used. Hence, it offers many benefits to the field of neuroscience, especially for tracing neovascular development.

Lycopersicon esculentum Lectin , Texas Red

The Lycopersicon esculentum Lectin, also known as tomato lectin, has unique features that make it highly useful in various applications. In this section, we’ll explore the features of LEL-Texas Red, including its sugar and blood group specificity. We’ll also discuss the different applications of LEL-Texas Red and its working concentration and stability. With the increasing demand for lectins as tools in biological research, understanding the properties and applications of LEL-Texas Red is essential.

Features of LEL-Texas Red

LEL-Texas Red is a lectin from the Lycopersicon esculentum plant with remarkable properties. Its molecular weight is around 37 kDa. It is sugar-specific and binds to blood group-specific glycophorins and Tamm-Horsfall glycoproteins. Also, it has an excitation wavelength of 590 nm and an emission wavelength of 620 nm, making it highly fluorescent.

This lectin stands out for its great stability and its application as a marker to detect neovascular development. It is useful to observe the formation of new vessels both in vitro and in vivo. Scientists have used it to study cell surface proteins in numerous biological processes, like vascular endothelium labeling, neurodegenerative diseases and malignant tumors.

Moreover, LEL-Texas Red is very stable and can be used to label brain tissue microvasculature without leakage. This lets researchers study how brain cells communicate through glucose transportation via the microvascular architecture.

In conclusion, LEL-Texas Red offers several features that make it ideal for various applications. It is stable, versatile and can be used to research multiple biological processes, such as neovascular development, brain cell interaction, and blood groups.

Sugar Specificity and Blood Group Specificity

Tomato Lectin is a protein that has both Sugar Specificity and Blood Group Specificity. This makes it useful for many applications. One such application is to make a table to show the Sugar Specificity and Blood Group Specificity of Lycopersicon esculentum Lectin (LEL – Texas Red). Research found that LEL can bind to terminal N-acetylgalactosamine residues. It is only specific for blood group A. The table below shows this.

Sugar/Group	Specificity
N-acetylgalactosamine residues	Yes
Blood group A	Yes

LEL’s specificity towards N-acetylgalactosamine residues lets it label cells with high-affinity glycan structures. When using LEL-Texas Red for labeling, it is important to keep it at low concentration and temperature (4°C). This will ensure its stability.

Applications of LEL-Texas Red

LEL-Texas Red, a lectin sourced from Lycopersicon esculentum, has multiple uses in biomedical research. It’s main purpose is to label glycoproteins, which lets us study their sugar and blood group specificity.

It can also be used to track neovascular growth, aiding the monitoring of angiogenesis. In neuroscience, LEL-Texas Red is an ideal staining agent for investigating the impact of blood vessels and microglial cells on neuronal activity.

The benefits of LEL-Texas Red are plentiful. It has a working concentration range between 5-20 µg/mL, with stable fluorescence properties. It’s derived from tomato plants, offering a more natural option than synthetic dyes or antibodies.

Below is a table of the common applications of LEL-Texas Red, along with their uses and references from reference data.

Application	Use	Reference
Labeling glycoproteins	To study their sugar and blood group specificity	1,2
Tracking neovascular growth	Monitoring angiogenesis	3,4
Investigating blood vessels and microglial cells in neuroscience	Determining their impact on neuronal activity	5,6

In summary, LEL-Texas Red is highly versatile, eco-friendly, and has many applications in biomedical research. It’s especially useful in glycobiology and neurosciences.

Working Concentration and Stability of LEL

LEL-Tomato Lectin is useful to researchers, because of its sugar-binding abilities and its capacity to label endothelial cells in rodents. To get the best results, it’s important to consider the right concentration and stability of LEL-Tomato Lectin.

Working concentrations of LEL-Tomato Lectin must be between 2-20 µg/ml, depending on the application. Too much lectin can lead to non-specific binding, while too little will not give enough signal. It’s important to remember that the stability of LEL-Tomato Lectin is essential. It retains its activity for two years at -20°C or at room temperature.

LEL-Tomato Lectin is ideal for research, as it binds to α-D-galactose residues present in glycoproteins, like those on vascular endothelial cells. It also binds to blood group O antigens. One application of LEL-Texas Red is to detect angiogenesis and neovascularization, by binding with endothelial cells lining newly formed vessels.

For proper study of blood vessels or brain development, it is important to consider the ideal concentration and storage conditions of LEL-Texas Red.