LECTINS AS MARKERS OF RUMEN EPITHELIAL-CELL DIFFERENTIATION

Lectins of different carbohydrate specificities (GNA (Galanthus nivali s), con A (Canavalia ensiformis), VFL (Vicia faba), PSL (Pisum sativum ), LCA (Lens culinaris), PNA (Arachis hypogaea; with or without prior neuraminidase treatment), WGA (Triticum vulgare), SBA (Glycine max), U EA-I (Ulex europaeus), LPA (Limulus polyphemus), BS-I B4 (Bandeiraea s implicifolia, isolectin B4)) were explored for use as differentiation markers of rumen epithelial cells in vivo and in vitro. Lectins specif ic for mannose (GNA), mannose/glucose (con A, VFL, PSL and LCA), N-ace tylglucosamine (WGA) or for N-acetylneuraminic acid (LPA) reacted gene rally with all types of rumen epithelial cell from both rumen tissue a nd cell culture. They were, therefore, not suitable markers of epithel ial differentiation. SBA was unsuitable because, although it reacted w ith both tissue and cultured rumen epithelial cells, it was also bound to non-stratified areas of primary rumen epithelial cell cultures. Bo th BS-1 B, and PNA (after neuraminidase treatment) had to be ruled out because they did not react with differentiated rumen tissue epithelia l cells, although they did bind to both stratified and non-stratified cultured cells. In contrast, UEA-1 reacted strongly with differentiate d rumen epithelial cells both from rumen tissue and cell cultures and therefore appears to be a good general marker for rumen epithelial cel l differentiation.