Lectin Selection Guide: A Useful Guide for Selecting the Right Lectin

Need a lectin for your research but aren’t sure which one to choose? Explore our lectin selection guide, conveniently organized by lectin source/species, carbohydrate specificity, and more to find the right lectin for your research.

• What Are Lectins?
• Lectin Selection Guide

What Are Lectins?

Lectins are proteins or glycoproteins from non-immune origins that are known to bind to specific carbohydrate structures. They agglutinate cells and/or precipitate complex carbohydrates. Lectins are isolated from a wide variety of natural sources, both plant and animal. Recombinant human and rat galectins are expressed in Escherichia coli. The agglutination activity of these highly specific carbohydrate-binding molecules is usually inhibited by a simple monosaccharide, but for some lectins di-, tri-, and even polysaccharides are required. 

Lectin Selection Guide

Lectins have unique carbohydrate specificities and can be used for various applications, such as cell surface labeling, glycoprotein purification, and carbohydrate analysis. Our lectin product line includes lectins from various sources such as plants, bacteria, and animals. These proteins have a wide range of biological activities such as mitogenic and agglutinating activities on certain cell types, making them useful for many different research areas.

In this lectin selection guide, we present various lectins along with their specific carbohydrate recognition specificities, mitogenic and agglutinating activities for certain cell types, and recommended applications. This comprehensive guide will aid in the selection of the most suitable lectin for your research needs.

Please click on your lectin source below to find tables detailing differences in the lectins and their specific properties.

• Arachis hypogaea (peanut)
• Artocarpus heterophyllus (jackfruit)
• Bandeiraea simplicifolia (Griffonia simplicifolia)
• Canavalia ensiformis (jack bean)
• Dolichos biflorus (horse gram)
• Erythrina cristagalli (coral tree)
• Galanthus nivalis (snowdrop)
• Glycine max (soybean)
• Helix pomatia (snail)
• Homo sapiens
• Lens culinaris (lentil)
• Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato)
• Phaseolus vulgaris (red kidney bean)
• Phytolacca americana (pokeweed)
• Pisum sativum (pea)
• Pseudomonas aeruginosa
• Triticum vulgaris (wheat germ)
• Ulex europaeus (gorse, furze)
• Wisteria floribunda

You can also download the full selection guide.
You can find the footnotes and references denoted in the tables at the end of the page.

Arachis hypogaea (peanut)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Arachis hypogaea (peanut)	PNA	Galβ1-3GalNAc >> Galβ1-4GlcNAc > Gal and Galβ1-3GlcNAc	L6135	Biotin	T-cells, Of	+	200		1,2,3
			L7381	FITC	T-cells, Of	+	200		1,2,3
			L7759	Peroxidase	T-cells, Of	+	200		1,2,3
			L0881	None	T-cells, Of	+	200	Affinity purified	1,2,3

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Artocarpus heterophyllus (jackfruit)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Reference
Artocarpus heterophyllus (jackfruit)	Jacalin	Galβ1-3GalNAc, mannose/high-mannose, galactose, complex N-glycans	SRP6176	None	T-cells	+	None	4

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Bandeiraea simplicifolia (Griffonia simplicifolia)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Mitogenicity	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Bandeiraea simplicifolia (Griffonia simplicifolia)	GSI-B4 (aka BSI-B4)	α-Gal	L2140	Biotin	Be	-	+	200	Isolectin B4	1,5,6
			L2895	FITC	Be	-	+	200	Isolectin B4	1,5,6
			L5391	Peroxidase	Be	-	+	200	Isolectin B4	1,5,6
			L3019	None	Be	-	+	300	Isolectin B4	1,5,6
	GSI (aka BSI)	α-Gal > α-GalNAc	L9381	FITC	A, B	-	+	200		1,5,6
			L2380	None	A, B	-	+	200		1,5,6

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Canavalia ensiformis (jack bean)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	Leukoagglutinini	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Canavalia ensiformis (jack bean)	Con A	α-Man, α-Glc, high-mannose	C7555	Agarose	+ c	-	200		1,7
			C2272	Biotin	+ c	-	200		1,7
			C7642	FITC	+ c	-	200		1,7
			L6397	Peroxidase	+ c	-	200		1,7
			C9017	Sepharose®	+ c	-	200		1,7
			L3885	Succinyl	+ c	-	200		1,7
			61760	None	+ c	-	100		1,7
			234567M	None	+ c	-	100		1,7
			C5275	None	+ c	-	200	Aseptically processed for cell culture	1,7
			C0412	None	+ c	-	200	γ-irradiated for cell culture	1,7
			L7647	None	+ c	-	200		1,7
			C2010	None	+ c	-	300		1,7

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Dolichos biflorus (horse gram)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Mitogenicity	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Dolichos biflorus (horse gram)	DBA	α-GalNAc, Forssman	L6533	Biotin	Ag	-	+	200	Buffered aqueous solution	1,6
			L2785	None	Ag	-	+	300		1,6

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Erythrina cristagalli (coral tree)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	Leukoagglutinini	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Reference
Erythrina cristagalli (coral tree)	ECA	Galβ1-4/3GlcNAc	L5390	None	+ c	-	+	200	8,9

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Galanthus nivalis (snowdrop)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Reference
Galanthus nivalis (snowdrop)	GNL/GNA	High-mannose N-glycans	L8775	Agarose	Rabbit erythrocytes	+	200	4
			L8275	None	Rabbit erythrocytes	+	200	4

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Glycine max (soybean)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	Leukoagglutinini	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Reference
Glycine max (soybean)	SBA	Terminal GalNAc > Gal	L1395	None	+ c	-	-	200	1,2,5

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Helix pomatia (snail)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Reference
Helix pomatia (snail)	HPA	Terminal GalNAcα	L6512	Biotin	A	+	200	1
			L3382	None	A	+	200	1

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Homo sapiens

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	MQ Level	Reference
Homo sapiens
	Gal-3	ß-Gal	G5170	None	200	10
	Gal-4	ß-Gal	SRP6373	None	None	10
	Gal-7	ß-Gal	SRP4647	None	None	10
	Gal-9	ß-Gal, Forssman pentasaccharide	SRP6374	None	None	10,11

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Lens culinaris (lentil)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Reference
Lens culinaris (lentil)	LCA/LcH	Core Fuc (Fucα1-6), terminal α-Man	L0511	Sepharose®	+	200	1,2,12
			L1277	None	+	200	1,2,12

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Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	Leukoagglutinini	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Reference
Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato)	LEA	Poly-GlcNAc/LacNAc (chitin)	L0401	FITC	- h	-	+	200	1,13

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Phaseolus vulgaris (red kidney bean)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	Leukoagglutinini	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Phaseolus vulgaris (red kidney bean)	PHA	Oligosaccharide	61764	None	+	+	+	100
	PHA-E	Bisecting GlcNAc w/type 2 LacNAc	L8629	None	Low		+	300		1
	PHA-L	β1-6 branched N-glycans	431784	None	+	+		100		1
			L4144	None	+	+		200	For cell culture	1
			L2769	None	+	+		200		1
	PHA-M	Oligosaccharide	L8902	None	+	+	+	200	For cell culture
			L2646	None	+	+	+	300
	PHA-P	Oligosaccharide	L1668	None	+	+	+	200	For cell culture
			L8754	None	+	+	+	200
			L9017	None	+	+	+	300	Affinity purified

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Phytolacca americana (pokeweed)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Phytolacca americana (pokeweed)	PWM	Poly-GlcNAc (chitin)	L8777	None	T, B-cells	+	200	For cell culture	1
			L9379	None	T, B-cells	+	200		1

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Pisum sativum (pea)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Reference
Pisum sativum (pea)	PSA	Core Fuc (Fucα1-6), terminal α-Man	L0770	FITC	+	200	1,12
			L5380	None	+	200	1,12

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Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Reference
Pseudomonas aeruginosa	PA-I, PA-IL, or LecA	Galα	L9895	None	+	200	1

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Triticum vulgaris (wheat germ)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Triticum vulgaris (wheat germ)	WGA	(GlcNAc)2, NeuNAc	61768	Agarose	- j	100		14,15,16
			L1882	Agarose	- j	200	>0.1 mg/mL binding capacity	14,15,16
			L1394	Agarose	- j	200	>0.5 mg/mL binding capacity	14,15,16
			L5142	Biotin	- j	200		14,15,16
			L4895	FITC	- j	200		14,15,16
			L3892	Peroxidase	- j	200		14,15,16
			61767	None	- j	100	GE assayed	14,15,16
			L0636	None	- j	200		14,15,16
			L9640	None	- j	300		14,15,16

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Ulex europaeus (gorse, furze)

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Mitogenicity	MQ Level	Reference
Ulex europaeus (gorse, furze)	UEA-I	Fucα1-2Galβ1-4GlcNAc/Gal, LewisY	L8262	Biotin	Type 2 H	-	200	1,6
			L9006	FITC	Type 2 H	-	200	1
			L8146	Peroxidase	Type 2 H	-	200	1
			L5505	None	Type 2 H	-	200	1

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Wisteria floribunda

Species	Abbreviation	Carbohydrate Specificity	Product No.	Conjugates	Blood Group Specificity	Erythroagglutinini	MQ Level	Suitability/ Application	Reference
Wisteria floribunda	WFA	Terminal GalNAc, LacNAcd	L1516	Biotin	A	+	200	Buffered aqueous solution	1
			L8258	None	A	+	200		1

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Footnotes

1. Mitogenic for neuraminidase-treated lymphocytes
2. Inhibits mitogenic activity of PHA
3. Non-agglutinating and mitogenic
4. More rare, only for specific structures; See references for more detail
5. Isolectin B₄ enriched for specificity against Blood Type B, but some Type A agglutination activity may be present
6. Agglutinates neuraminidase-treated O-type RBCs
7. Stronger binding to Forssman antigen than blood group A
8. Has anti-mitogenic activity
9. If empty, lectin may have agglutinating activities, but may not be characterized or is not specific to erythrocytes or leukocytes
10. Not considered mitogenic, but will induce cytokine production

References

1. Bojar D, Meche L, Meng G, Eng W, Smith DF, Cummings RD, Mahal LK. 2022. A Useful Guide to Lectin Binding: Machine-Learning Directed Annotation of 57 Unique Lectin Specificities. ACS Chem. Biol.. 17(11):2993-3012. https://doi.org/10.1021/acschembio.1c00689

2. Ashraf MT, Khan RH. 2003. Med Sci Monit.(9(11)):RA265-269.

3. 1994. Histochemical Study of Glycoconjugates in the Actinopterygian Olfactory System. Lectins: Biology, Biochemistry, Clinical Biochemistry. Textop. Volume 6p 727.

4. Tsaneva M, Van Damme EJM. 2020. 130 years of Plant Lectin Research. Glycoconj J. 37(5):533-551. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10719-020-09942-y

5. 1995. Histochemical Study of Glycoconjugates in the Actinopterygian Olfactory System. Lectins: Biology, Biochemistry, Clinical Biochemistry. Textop. Volume 10p 29.

6. Muraille E, Pajak B, Urbain J, Leo O. 1999. Carbohydrate-Bearing Cell Surface Receptors Involved in Innate Immunity: Interleukin-12 Induction by Mitogenic and Nonmitogenic Lectins. Cellular Immunology. 191(1):1-9. https://doi.org/10.1006/cimm.1998.1401

7. Barre A, Bourne Y, Van Damme E, Rougé P. Overview of the Structure–Function Relationships of Mannose-Specific Lectins from Plants, Algae and Fungi. IJMS. 20(2):254. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20020254

8. IGLESIAS JL, LIS H, SHARON N. 1982. Purification and Properties of a d-Galactose/N-Acetyl-d- galactosamine-Specific Lectin from Erythrina cristagalli. Eur J Biochem. 123(2):247-252. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1432-1033.1982.tb19760.x

9. Wu AM, Wu JH, Tsai M, Yang Z, Sharon N, Herp A. 2007. Differential affinities of Erythrina cristagalli lectin (ECL) toward monosaccharides and polyvalent mammalian structural units. Glycoconj J. 24(9):591-604. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10719-007-9063-y

10. Modenutti CP, Capurro JIB, Di Lella S, Martí MA. The Structural Biology of Galectin-Ligand Recognition: Current Advances in Modeling Tools, Protein Engineering, and Inhibitor Design. Front. Chem.. 7 https://doi.org/10.3389/fchem.2019.00823

11. Nagae M, Nishi N, Nakamura-Tsuruta S, Hirabayashi J, Wakatsuki S, Kato R. 2008. Structural Analysis of the Human Galectin-9 N-terminal Carbohydrate Recognition Domain Reveals Unexpected Properties that Differ from the Mouse Orthologue. Journal of Molecular Biology. 375(1):119-135. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmb.2007.09.060

12. Tateno H, Nakamura-Tsuruta S, Hirabayashi J. 2009. Comparative analysis of core-fucose-binding lectins from Lens culinaris and Pisum sativum using frontal affinity chromatography. Glycobiology. 19(5):527-536. https://doi.org/10.1093/glycob/cwp016

13. Nachbar M, Oppenheim J, Thomas J. 1980. Lectins in the U.S. Diet. Isolation and characterization of a lectin from the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum).. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 255(5):2056-2061. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0021-9258(19)85992-6

14. DALLAPELLEGRINA C, RIZZI C, MOSCONI S, ZOCCATELLI G, PERUFFO A, CHIGNOLA R. 2005. Plant lectins as carriers for oral drugs: Is wheat germ agglutinin a suitable candidate?. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology. 207(2):170-178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.taap.2005.01.001

15. Sharon N. 2007. Lectins: Carbohydrate-specific Reagents and Biological Recognition Molecules. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 282(5):2753-2764. https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.x600004200

16. Kawakami K, Yamamoto Y, Onoue K. 1988. Effect of Wheat Germ Agglutinin on T Lymphocyte Activation. Microbiology and Immunology. 32(4):413-422. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1348-0421.1988.tb01400.x