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History of Plant Lectin Research

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Book cover Lectins

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1200))

Abstract

Numerous plant species are known to express one or more lectins or proteins containing a lectin domain, enabling these proteins to select and bind specific carbohydrate structures. The group of plant lectins is quite heterogeneous since lectins differ in their molecular structure, specificity for certain carbohydrate structures, and biological activities resulting therefrom. This chapter presents a short historical overview on how plant lectin research has evolved over the years from a discipline aiming merely at the purification and characterization of plant lectins towards the application of plant lectins as tools in glycobiology.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lab of Biochemistry and Glycobiology, Department of Molecular Biotechnology, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Els J. M. Van Damme

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  1. Els J. M. Van Damme
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Correspondence to Els J. M. Van Damme .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba, Japan

    Jun Hirabayashi

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Van Damme, E.J.M. (2014). History of Plant Lectin Research. In: Hirabayashi, J. (eds) Lectins. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1200. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1292-6_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1292-6_1

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-1291-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-1292-6

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