An Interdisciplinary Enrichment Laboratory on Lectin Production

Justin R. Rhees; Suzanne M. Harley

doi:10.29074/ascls.2021003159

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Table 1.

Postactivity survey results

Question 1. Was it interesting for you to see where lectins come from?

Yes, it was interesting to see all of the steps that it actually took to isolate lectins.
Yes.
Yes, very.
Yes. I had imagined that they were created artificially at first. When I arrived at the lab, I hadn’t realized the process of extracting lectins from seeds would be as simple as it actually is.
Yes!
Yes.
Yes.
Yes, I learned that lectins were something some reagents were made of and that was it so I wanted to know a bit more.
Yes.
Yes, it was. We talked about lectins a lot in class, and getting to see how they were made was very interesting.
Yes, it is always helpful to make what we’re learning more real.
Very much, yes.
Yes! Very interesting and neat to learn about.

Question 2. What did you enjoy most about this activity?

How we could participate and check the concentrations of the lectins.
I liked that we were able to see real applications of how reagents like lectins come from.
Going to the greenhouses. I thought it was very all very informative and quite interesting.
The botany professor was engaging. She was enthusiastic about her field and did an excellent job at involving individual students in the process.
How hands-on it was and exploring a different area of the university.
It was neat to see the actual process of where the lectins originated from.
It was interesting to see that lectins could be made from other substances like peas.
Going to another department to see how they do things.
Getting to see the intersection of very different sciences: botany and immunohematology.
I enjoyed the process of purification. The mush of peas went from looking gross to a nice, pristine, clear solution.
I enjoyed how hands-on and how involved the instructor was with the audience.
Listening to the presenter and visiting the greenhouse.
Knowing what lectins are and what they can be used for.

Question 3. Would you recommend future classes do this?

Yes, I would.
Absolutely.
Yes.
Absolutely. It’s valuable to understand where our reagents are coming from.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes, absolutely.
Yes, I would highly recommend this at least once per semester.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.

Question 4. During this activity, a nanodrop machine was used to measure the concentration of the extracted lectin. Was it interesting for you to see applications for analytical methods (eg, spectrophotometry, and so forth) outside of the medical laboratory sciences?

Yes.
Yes. I had no idea of the practices outside of MLS.
Yes. It was cool to see the whole set up and then participate in it as well.
It is interesting that spectrophotometry is so widely employed.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes. I got to see the same machines we have here but smaller and more high tech.
Yes, and also to see how advanced spectrophotometers can be.
It was interesting to see "clinical lab methods" being used outside of the clinical lab. This field is very broad, and has lots of opportunities, so it was good to see that.
Yes, I loved how much effort was put into the presentation.
Yes.
Yes. To know the same machines can be used for so many different things.

Question 5. What would you have like to have seen, in addition to what was done?

I think everything I saw was great.
See how the lectins are processed later.
N/A
I was satisfied with what I saw and did.
Maybe have a class swap? We can show botany majors what lectins can be used for in our field.
No.
Nothing.
An activity where we make some lectins for blood bank lab.
I thought it was good the way it was.
It would be nice to see a couple different kinds of lectin being made.
I can’t think of anything.
N/A
How it related to blood banking activities.

Question 6. Do you have any recommendations for improvements to this activity?

No recommendations. It was great.
Use the lectin to test a patient sample.
No.
It would be valuable to have more hands-on activities for all the students (though probably difficult to prepare).
Nope.
No.
Have the students study how lectins are made before coming to the activity.
Provide some food?
It would be cool to do a Ulex europaeus or a Dolichos biflorus extraction to see exactly what is done with our reagents.
Do a couple different lectin types.
A room where everyone can face front.
No.
N/A

Abbreviation: MLS, medical laboratory science; N/A, not applicable.

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Table 2.

Postactivity quiz results

Quiz Respondents (n = 11)

Question 1. Lectins are:

A. Proteins that bind to carbohydrates (9)*
B. Carbohydrates that bind to proteins (1)
C. Antibodies that bind to carbohydrates (1)
D. Antibodies that bind to proteins

Question 2. The Ulex europaeus lectin has specificity for:

A. A1 antigens
B. B antigens
C. Rh antigens (1)
D. H antigens (10)*

Question 3. The Dolichos biflorus lectin has specificity for:

A. A1 antigens (11)*
B. B antigens
C. Rh antigens
D. H antigens

Question 4. In the lectin extraction laboratory facilitated by the botany laboratory, which of the following methods of analysis was employed to measure the concentration of the extracted lectin?

A. Affinity chromatography
B. Gel electrophoresis
C. Spectrophotometry (11)*
D. Phytohemagglutination

Question 5. In the lectin extraction laboratory facilitated by the botany laboratory, which of the following methods is employed to purify the extracted lectin?