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. 2022 Jun 29;20(7):430. doi: 10.3390/md20070430

Table 2.

Biological activities of lectins extracted from different marine organisms.

Biological Activity Model System Source of Lectin Test Types Applied Strain Optimum Dose Findings References
Antibacterial Microorganisms and bay scallops Bay scallop (Argopecten irradians)
C type lectin (Ai Lec)		 RT-PCR
  • -

    Vibrio anguillarum

  • -

    Micrococcus luteus

50 μg/mL Ai Lec was involved in the immune response to Gram-positive and Gram-negative microbial infection, especially Vibrio anguillarum and Micrococcus luteus in bay scallop. [36]
Microorganism and demosponge Demosponge (Suberites domuncula)
Suberites lectin		 PCR
  • -

    Staphylococcus aureus

  • -

    Escherichia coli

10 μg/mL The lectin showed antibacterial activity against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli). [131]
Microorganism and manila clam Manila clam (Ruditapes philippinarum)
Manila clam lectin (MCL-4)		 Inverted microscope
  • -

    Alteromonas haloplanktis

  • -

    Marinococcus halophilus

  • -

    Vibrio tubiashii

25 μg/mL MCL-4 had bacteriostatic properties and may contribute to the host defense mechanisms against invading microorganisms in Manila clam [151]
Microorganism and rabbit erythrocyte Cobia (Rachycentron canadum)
Tetrameric lection		 Ion chromatography
  • -

    E. coli

250 μg/mL The lectin showed antibacterial activity toward E. coli. [10]
Microorganism and human erythrocytes Marine sponge (Cliona varians)
CvL lectin		 Affinity chromatography
  • -

    Bacillus subtilis

25 μg/mL CvL lectin showed intense antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis. [150]
Antiviral Cell line, virus, and fish Flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus)
Galectin-1		 qRt-PCR
  • -

    LCDV

 50 μg/mL Galectin-1 from flounder was able to neutralize the lymphocystis disease virus (LCDV) and exhibited anti-inflammatory activity against LCDV. [152]
Shrimp Shrimp (Penaeus monodon)
C-type lectin		 PCR
  • -

    WSSV

 - A lectin domain containing PmAV protein isolated from shrimp was effective against white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) [153]
Virus and cell lines Marine worm (Chaetopterus variopedatus)
β-galactose-specific lectin (CVL) 		qRt-PCR
  • -

    HIV-1

 25–100 μg/mL CVL blocked the cell–cell fusion process of the human immunodeficiency virus infected and uninfected cells with an EC50 of 0.07 μM and has the potential to be an anti-HIV-1 agent. [154]
Virus and cell lines Sea worm (Serpula vermicularis)
GlcNAc-specific lection (SVL)		 ELISA
  • -

    HIV-1

 30 μg/mL SVL showed potential activity against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) by producing viral p24 antigen, with EC50 values of 0.23 and 0.15 μg/mL. [155]
Antifungal Microbial cells Chinese amphioxus (Branchiostoma belcheri)
C-type lectin
(AmphiCTL1)		 Q-PCR
  • -

    Saccharomyces cerevisiae

200 μg/mL AmphiCTL-1 lectin showed potential activity against Saccharomyces cerevisiae. [153]
Microbial cells Orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides)
C-type lectin (Ec-CTL)		 Q-PCR
  • -

    Saccharomyces cerevisiae

10 μg This lectin showed potent activity against S. cerevisiae. [156]
Microbial cells Lamprey (Lampetra japonica)
Serum lectin (NPGBP)		 RT-PCR
  • -

    Candida albicans

10 mg/mL The lectin showed agglutinating activities against Candida albicans. [157]
Anticancer or antitumour Virus and cell lines Marine worm (Chaetopterus variopedatus)
β-galactose-specific lectin (CVL) 		qRt-PCR - 25–100 μg/mL CVL blocked the cell–cell fusion process of the human immunodeficiency virus infected and uninfected cells with an EC50 of 0.07 μM and has the potential to be an anti-HIV-1 agent. [154]
Virus and cell lines Sea worm (Serpula vermicularis)
GlcNAc-specific lection (SVL)		 ELISA - 30 μg/mL SVL showed potential activity against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) by producing viral p24 antigen, with EC50 values of 0.23 and 0.15 μg/mL. [155]
Tumor cell line Chinook salmon
(Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)
Roe lectin		 Microplate reader - - The lectin showed intense antiproliferative activity towards human breast cancer MCF-7 cells and hepatoma Hep G2 cells. [158]
Cancer cell lines Marine sponge
(Cliona varians)
CvL lectin		 Flow cytometry - 70–100
μg/mL		 CvL lectin showed potential activity on K562 and Jurkat cancer cell lines. [159]
Cancer cells Wheat germ (Triticum vulgaris)
WGA lectin		 Electrode array - 100 μg/mL A label-free electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) biosensor could be promising for the label-free profiling of the glycan expression of cancer-related glycoproteins in the early stage of a cancer diagnosis. [160]