Localization of sugar residues in the stomach of non-human primates by lectin histochemistry

Abstract EN

Using lectin histochemistry, the stomach of three species of non-human primates was investigated to clarify their sugar residues' staining affinity and distribution patterns.

N-acetylglucosamine and/or neuraminic acid (represented in positive reaction to WGA conjugate) were rich in all gastric regions with little differences between the deep and superficial parts of the same region.

In the same time N-acetylgalactosamine (represented in positive reaction to PNA conjugate), ? D-glucose and ? D-mannose (represented in positive reaction to Con-A conjugate), were abundant in the deep parts of the gastric mucosa and were scanty or absent in the superficial regions of the gastric mucosa.

In conclusion, there is a difference among the mucosubstances of surface and foveolar mucous cells, mucous neck cells, and gastric gland cells.

This indicates heterogeneous composition of gastric mucus, or mucus molecules with variations in the degree of glycosylation of their oligosaccharide chains in the different cells which suggest that lectin binding affinity in the gastric mucosa correlated mostly to the degree of cellular differentiation.

Key words: Lectins, histochemistry, non-human primates, stomach.