Abrus precatorius lectin

Lectins are of widespread occurrence in legumes (e.g. soybeans, lentils, kidney beans, jack beans). They are potentially toxic as they can impair tissue functions, but the body can usually replace any damaged cells faster than they are destroyed (Johns 1990). Lectins are responsible for toxicity in the notorious garden plant rosary pea—Abrus precatorius. Lectins in foods are readily destroyed by processing and cooking. 

Abrus Abrins (toxic lectins) Abrus precatorius, A. pulchellus Apoptotic (Gal-specific lectin)... 

Fig. 15.—Human IgA, Glycopeptide871 Showing the Carbohydrate-binding Loci for Various Lectins, [a. Limulus polyphemus b, Triticum vulgaris c, Ricinus communis d, Sophora japonica e, Abrus precatorius f, Cytisus sessilifolius g, Phaseolus vulgaris-, h, Canavalia ensiformis i, Lens culinaris j, Pisum sativus k, Vicia faba-, 1, Bandeiraea simplicifolia II m, Solanum tuberosum and n, Ulex europeus II.]...

Olsnes, S., Saltvedt, E., Pihl, A. (1974a). Isolation and comparison of galactose-binding lectins Jrom Abrus precatorius and Ricinus communis. J. Biol. Chem. 249 803-10. 

Olsnes, S., Pappenheimer, A.M., Jr. and Meren, R. (1974a) Lectins from Abrus precatorius and Ricinus communis. II. Hybrid toxins and their interaction with chain-specific antibodies. J Immunol, 113, 842-847. 

Olsnes, S., Refsnes, K., Christensen, T.B. and Pihl, A. (1975) Studies on the structure and properties of the lectins from Abrus precatorius and Ricinus communis. Biochim Biophys Acta, 405, 1-10. 

Chemical class Lectin Source Abrus precatorius. Molecular formula C12H14N2 O2. Molecular weight 216.28. Melting point 216.28 deg C. 

Olsnes S (1978). Toxic and nontoxic lectins from Abrus precatorius. Methods Enzymol, 50,323-330. 

In the late 1800s, Stillmark4 discovered that the beans of the castor plant contained a toxic protein, which he named ricin. He discovered that ricin caused agglutination of erythrocytes and precipitation of serum proteins. (The lectin properties of ricin and abrin [a closely related toxin from the bean of Abrus precatorius] and their use as tools for research were described in 1972 by Sharon and Lis.5)... 

Samtleben R, Kiefer M, Luther P (1985) Characterization of the different lectins from Viscum album (mistletoe) and their structural relationships with the agglutinins from Abrus precatorius and Ricinus communis. In Bog-Hansen TC, Breborowicz J (eds) Lectins Biology, biochemistry, clinical biochemistry, Vol 4. DeGruyter, Berlin New York, 617-626... 

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