Strong affinity of Maackia amurensis hemagglutinin (MAH) for sialic acid-containing Ser/Thr-linked carbohydrate chains of N-terminal octapeptides from human glycophorin A

The interaction of the Maackia amurensis hemagglutinin (MAH) with various glycopeptides and oligosaccharides was investigated by means of immobilized lectin affinity chromatography. An amino terminal octapeptide obtained from human glycophorin A having three Neu5Acα→3Galβ1→3(Neu5Acα2→6)GalNAc tetrasaccharide chains, designated as CB-II, was found to have an extremely strong affinity for MAH. Therefore, it is strongly suggested that hemagglutination by MAH was caused by its interaction with Ser/Thr-linked carbohydrate chains of human glycophorin A on erythrocyte membranes.