Immunochemical reactivity of soybean b-conglycinin subunits

PETRUCCELLI, S., CHIRDO, F.G., AÑÓN, M.C.

FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL IMMUNOLOGY

Año: 2005 vol. 16 p. 17 - 28

0954-0105

The immunochemical reactivity of two polyclonal sera raised against soybean purified and bsubunits was analyzed. We show that anti-aa? serum mainly reacts with aa´ subunits and b-subunit, but it does not recognize b subunit. In addition, b subunit is not able to compete with aa´ subunit for anti-aa´serum recognition sites; therefore the main immunogenic region of aa´ subunits is the extension region. Both anti-aa´ and anti-b sera were able to recognize E. Coli produced a subunit, consequently glycosylation is apparently not required for antigen_/antibody interaction. Anti-b subunit serum shows strong reactivity against soybean produced b-subunitand recombinant a subunit, while it shows weak recognition of soybean purified aa´ subunits. A mutant of a subunit with the N terminal b barrel region and C terminal a helices deleted, failedto be recognized by anti-b serum. For that reason although N and C terminal domains are structurally equivalent, their immunochemical reactivity is different.