INFLUENZA-A AND SENDAI VIRUSES PREFERENTIALLY BIND TO FUCOSYLATED GANGLIOSIDES WITH LINEAR POLY-N-ACETYLLACTOSAMINYL CHAINS FROM HUMAN GRANULOCYTES

Influenza A and Sendai viruses are known to bind to various extent to neolacto-series gangliosides IV(3)Neu5Ac-nLcOse(4)Cer, IV(6)NeuSAc-nLc Ose(4)Cer, and VI(3)Neu5Ac-nLcOse(6)Cer, which are the dominant gangli osides of human granulocytes, Recently, minor gangliosides of granuloc ytes were characterized and found to express sialyl Lewis(x) and VIM-2 epitopes. These long chain linear monosialogangliosides with nLcOse(8 ), and nLcOse(10), cores, carrying one to three fucoses, are shown in this study to bind with strong avidity to influenza A/PR/8/34 (HlNl), A/X-31 (H3N2), and Sendai virus (Z-strain) using the overlay technique . These and recent data from other groups imply that selectins and vir us hemagglutinins are capable of competing with lipid bound sialyl Lew is(x) and VIM-2 epitopes on myeloid cells during inflammatory reaction s. (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.