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Lectin-Detectable Differences in Carbohydrate-Containing Surface Moieties of Macroconidia of Fusarium roseum ‘Avenaceum’ and Fusarium solani. Stephen J. Kleinschuster, Assistant Professor of Anatomy, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80521; Ralph Baker, Professor of Botany and Plant Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80521. Phytopathology 64:394-399. Accepted for publication 9 October 1973. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-64-394.

Relative qualitative and quantitative aspects of the structural-chemical nature of the mucilaginous layers of the spores of Fusarium roseum ‘Avenaceum’ and Fusarium solani f. sp. phaseoli are revealed as differences in spore agglutination by lectins which bind to specific carbohydrate-containing receptor sites. Available receptors for Concanavalin A (Con A) were most numerous on the nontreated spore surfaces of either species. Receptors for wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) and ricin were not detected on nontreated surfaces. Trypsin-treated F. roseum macroconidia indicated moderate amounts of ricin receptors but few Con A and WGA receptors. Trypsin-treated F. solani macroconidia suggested massive quantities of WGA receptors and moderate amounts of Con A and ricin receptors. Macroconidia of F. roseum stripped of the mucilaginous coat by KOH treatment revealed moderate quantities of Con A, WGA, and ricin receptors. Similarly treated F. solani spores showed massive amounts of Con A receptors and no detectable WGA or ricin receptors at this structural level.