Sugar binding by legume lectins
The legume lectins use an ingenious framework for binding specific sugars. This framework consists of a conserved monosaccharide binding site in which four conserved residues from four separate regions in the protein confer affinity (see figure), a variable loop that confers monosaccharide specificity and a number of subsites around the monosaccharide binding site that harbour additional sugar residues or hydrophobic groups.Quaternary structure
The legume lectins are also interesting from the point of view of protein structure. Despite the conserved structure of the legume lectin subunit, they can adopt a wide range of quaternary structures.{{cite journal , vauthors=Manoj N, Suguna K , title=Signature of quaternary structure in the sequences of legume lectins , journal=Protein Eng. , volume=14 , issue=10 , pages=735–45 , date=October 2001 , pmid=11739891 , doi= 10.1093/protein/14.10.735, doi-access=freeReferences
{{reflist {{Lectins Plant proteins Lectins