Mouse Siglec-F Alexa Fluor® 488-conjugated Antibody

Siglecs (1) (sialic acid binding Ig-like lectins) are I-type (Ig-type) lectins (2) belonging to the Ig superfamily. They are characterized by an N-terminal Ig-like V-type domain which mediates sialic acid binding (3), followed by varying numbers of Ig-like C2-type domains (1, 4). Eleven human Siglecs have been cloned and characterized (1, 4). They are sialoadhesin/CD169/Siglec-1, CD22/Siglec-2, CD33/Siglec-3, Myelin-Associated Glycoprotein (MAG/Siglec-4a) and Siglec 5 to 11 (4‑6). To date, no Siglec has been shown to recognized any cell surface ligand other than sialic acids, suggesting that interactions with glycans containing this carbohydrate are important in mediating the biological functions of Siglecs. Siglec 5 to 11 share a high degree of sequence similarity with CD33/Siglec-3 both in their extracellular and intracellular regions. They are collectively referred to as CD33-related Siglecs. One remarkable feature of the CD33-related Siglecs is their differential expression pattern within the hematopoietic system (4, 5). This fact, together with the presence of two conserved immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibition motifs (ITIMs) in their cytoplasmic tails, suggests that CD33-related Siglecs are involved in the regulation of cellular activation within the immune system. Mouse Siglec-F cDNA encodes a 569 amino acid polypeptide with a hydrophobic signal peptide, an N-terminal Ig-like V-type domain, three Ig-like C2-type domains, a transmembrane region and a cytoplasmic tail (7). The expression of Siglec-F is restricted to the cells of myelomonocytic lineage. Mouse Siglec-F is likely an ortholog of human Siglec-5. Unlike many human CD33-related Siglecs, which show similar binding to both alpha2,3- and alpha2,6-linked sialic acids, mouse Siglec-F preferentially recognize alpha2,3-linked sialic acid.