Biochemical characterization of glycoprotein components in human ovarian cyst fluids by lectins.

1. Perchloric acid-soluble glycoprotein fractions (PASFs) were separated, in yields of 180-610 mg per 100 ml of cyst fluid, from the cyst fluids of human ovarian cystadenomas (OCAs) in benign and borderline and ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCC) in malignant, and then identified as glycoproteins with 19.1-69.5% carbohydrate by their chemical composition analyses. 2. These PASFs reacted with anti-A, -B, -Lea and/or -Leb sera, but did not react with anti-H, -M and -N sera. All of the PASFs reacted with Ricinus communis lectin (RCA-I). Among these PASFs, PASFs from the cyst fluids of OCA in benign did not react with Arachis hypogaea anti-T lectin (PNA) and both of the anti-N lectins of Vicia graminea (VGA) and Vicia unijuga (VUA), and PASFs from OCA in borderline reacted with only PNA and PASFs from OCC in malignant reacted with the three lectins, PNA, VGA and VUA. However, none of PASFs from human normal sera and various normal organ tissues reacted with any of RCA, PNA, VGA and VUA. 3. The above-mentioned results seem to show that the examination of glycoproteins of ovarian cyst fluids by the combined use of RCA-I, PNA and VGA (or VUA) permits biochemical diagnosis of the canceration degree of ovarian cystomas.