R. Sankaranarayanan et al., A NOVEL MODE OF CARBOHYDRATE-RECOGNITION IN JACALIN, A MORACEAE PLANTLECTIN WITH A BETA-PRISM FOLD, Nature structural biology, 3(7), 1996, pp. 596-603
Jacalin, a tetrameric two-chain lectin (66,000 M(r)) from jackfruit se
eds, is highly specific for the tumour associated T-antigenic disaccha
ride. The crystal structure of jacalin with methyl-alpha-D-galactose r
eveals that each subunit has a three-fold symmetric beta-prism fold ma
de up of three four-stranded beta-sheets. The lectin exhibits a novel
carbohydrate-binding site involving the N terminus of the alpha-chain
which is generated through a post-translational modification involving
proteolysis, the first known instance where such a modification has b
een used to confer carbohydrate specificity. This new lectin fold may
be characteristic of the Moraceae plant family. The structure provides
an explanation for the relative affinities of the lectin for galactos
e derivatives and provides insights into the structural basis of its T
-antigen specificity.