A unique mannose-binding lectin, highly specific for terminal Man(␣1,3)Man groups, was isolated from bulbs of crocus (Crocus vernus All.). The lectin failed to bind to a mannose affinity column and was purified by simple gel permeation chromatography (Sephacryl S200). The purified lectin, obtained in crystalline form, had a molecular mass of 44 kDa on gel filtration and showed a single peptide band with a molecular mass of 11 kDa on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, indicating it to be a tetrameric protein composed of four identical subunits. The N-terminal amino acid sequence analysis of the crocus lectin showed essentially no homology with that of other mannose-binding bulb lectins. The crocus lectin selectively interacted with the wild type Saccharomyces cerevisiae and other mannans carrying terminal Man(␣1,3)Man but not with those lacking this disaccharide unit. In hapten inhibition studies, methyl ␣-mannopyranoside did not inhibit the mannan-lectin interaction. Of various ␣-mannooligosaccharides, those having the Man(␣1,3)Man sequence showed the highest inhibitory potency, confirming the strict requirement of lectin for terminal ␣1,3-linked mannosylmannose units. An affinity column of immobilized lectin enabled the complete resolution of yeast mannan and glycogen. The immobilized lectin may provide a useful tool for purification and analysis of biologically important polysaccharides and glycoproteins.Since the first report on a yeast mannan-binding lectin from bulbs of tulip, Tulipa generiana (1), several kinds of ␣-mannose-binding lectins have been studied in our laboratory, mostly from bulbs of the family Amaryllidaceae, such as Galanthus nivalis (snow drop; GNA) 1 (2, 3), Hippeastrum hybrid (amaryllis), Narcissus pseudonarcissus (daffodil) (4), Sternbergia lutea (5), and Allium sativum (garlic) (6), which belongs to the Lilaceae family. A similar lectin was also isolated from leaves of Listera ovata (twayblade) (7). These lectins are distinct from hitherto known mannose/glucose-binding lectins, such as concanavalin A and other legume lectins, in their strict requirement for the axial C-2 hydroxyl group of ␣-D-mannopyranose. Our detailed studies of the carbohydrate binding specificity of these lectins have indicated some differences with regard to the location of mannosidic linkages at the terminal and/or internal position in the carbohydrate chain. For instance, GNA recognizes terminal Man(␣1,3)Man (3) and also certain internal linkages (8). Similarly, L. ovata lectin can recognize the internal sequence of ␣(1,3)-linked mannosidic linkages (7). In a survey of new plant lectins we found that the bulbs of Crocus vernus All., belonging to the family Iridaceae, accumulates a very unique mannose-binding lectin with a very strict requirement for terminal ␣-1,3-mannosyl mannose units. This lectin, designated CVA, agglutinates rabbit but not human erythrocytes and does not appear to have homology with hitherto known mannose-binding lectins in its sequence of Nterminal amino acids. This paper reports the pu...