SNAKE-VENOM C-TYPE LECTINS AS TOOLS IN PLATELET RESEARCH

The snake C-type lectins are a major group of proteins present in veno ms that fold to a structure with similarities to classic C-type lectin s, The loop that would be involved in calcium and sugar binding is tru ncated and heterodimers are linked by a disulphide bond and by swappin g loop domains between the subunits. Many of these C-type lectins inte ract with platelet receptors to inhibit or induce platelet activation. The use of these C-type lectins to investigate platelet function is d iscussed and illustrated with specific examples.