Membrane lectins on human monocytes

Freshly isolated human monocytes, which do not contain cell-surface mannose-specific receptors, bind mannose 6-phosphate and actively endocytose mannose 6-phosphate-bearing neoglycoproteins (6-P-Man-F-BSA). Three days after isolation, human monocytes endocytose very actively 6-P-Man-F-BSA as well as Man-F-BSA, and the endocytosed neoglycoproteins are rapidly degraded. These results were obtained in quantitative flow cytofluorometry by using a panel of fluoresceinylated sugar-substituted serum albumins (neoglycoproteins). Thus, in contrast to mannose receptors which appear only after maturation, mannose 6-phosphate receptors are already present on freshly isolated human monocytes.