Immunology lectins role

Peyers patches are covered by epithelial cells which can differentiate into M cells. M cells play an important role in the immunologic surveillance of the gut and are involved in specific functions like transport of particles, antigens, macromolecules. M cells seem to be involve in the absorption of intact proteins (Walker and Sanderson 1992). Peyers patches have been studied for uptake of macromolecules. Their proximal vicinity to immunocompetent cells is another hurdle for industrial use as a preferred uptake route (Daugherty and Mrsny 1999 Neutra 1998). M cells have been used to study uptake of lectins (for overview, see Daugherty and Mrsny 1999). However both cell types - Peyers patches and M cells - clearly are limited in their use as a preferred uptake route due to a small surface area they are covering and the limited capacity of absorbed molecules. 

Lectins have played an important role in the development of immunology. In 1891, Ehrlich7 showed that specific immunity to the toxic... 

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