Bufo japonicus japonicus and Xenopus laevis laevis egg jellies contain structurally related antigens and cortical granule lectin ligands

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Abstract
The antigenic relationship of the egg jelly coat glycoproteins from Bufo japonicus japonicus and Xenopus laevis laevis was investigated using agar double diffusion methods. The presence of ligands in the jelly coats for the cortical granule lectin from X. l. laevis eggs was also investigated. Anti‐jelly serum for both anuran species crossreacted with the jelly coat from the other species with precipitin patterns of identity. Each egg jelly coat of both species contained two ligands for the cortical granule lectin. Although the ligands in the two different jelly coats appeared to react with the lectin in a pattern of identity, the species ligands were antigenically distinguishable using anti‐Xenopus jelly serum. The observations that the two anuran egg jelly coats were antigenically related and that they both contained ligands for the X. l. laevis cortical granule lectin was interpreted in terms of fertilization mechanisms in the two different species. In addition, these observations bring into question the currently accepted phylogenetic relationship of B.j. japonicus and X.l. laevis.