This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Web of Science (15) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Kojima, M. Articles by Uritani, I. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Kojima, M. Articles by Uritani, I. Agricola Articles by Kojima, M. Articles by Uritani, I.

Articles

Isolation and Characterization of Factors in Sweet Potato Root Which Agglutinate Germinated Spores of Ceratocystis fimbriata, Black Rot Fungus

Ikuzo Uritani

Institute for Biochemical Regulation, Faculty of Agriculture, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya 464, Japan, Laboratory of Biochemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya 464, Japan

A factor which agglutinates the germinated spores of Ceratocystis fimbriata was isolated from the sweet potato root. The factor is a glycoprotein with a molecular weight of 1.6 x 10⁶ daltons and required divalent cations such as Ca²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ni²⁺, and Mg²⁺ for activity. The activity of the factor was pH-dependent. The factor also agglutinated rabbit erythrocytes and is classified as a phytohemagglutinin or lectin. The factor agglutinated germinated spores of seven strains of C. fimbriata to almost the same degree. The factor showed differential agglutinating activity toward the strains in the presence of unidentified low molecular weight factor(s) in the sweet potato root. These results support our earlier suggestion that the spore-agglutinating factors in host plants function as the determinants of specificity in some host-parasite interactions.