Cell surface presentation, modified sialic acids

The receptor for influenza C is assumed to be 9-0-acetyl sialic acid, based on the esterase activity of its receptor-destroying enzyme [10]. In vivo, 9-O-acetyl sialic acids are added selectively to glycoproteins and glycolipids in a limited range of cell types, although these cell types are reasonably widely distributed [11], including mucosal epithelia. A putative receptor protein, a 40 kDa mucin heavily modified by 9-O-acetyl sialic acid, is present on apical surfaces of permissive MDCK cells and is rapidly and constitutively endocytosed [12],... 

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