Binding of cholera toxin by various tissues.

Under certain conditions, it is possible to confirm the observation by Peterson (1974) that the cholera toxin-binding capacities of tissues from brain and colon mucosa, and from liver and small intestine mucosa, are comparable. Binding of toxin by all tissues except brain is very variable, but is roughtly proportional to their content of the toxin-binding ganglioside galactosyl-N-acetylgalactosaminyl (sialosyl) lactosyl ceramide. It appears that some toxin-binding sites of the mucosa of the small intestin and colon may be masked. It has also been confirmed that there may be some solubilization of toxin-binding material from brain on standing a few days at 4 C, but this is comparatively slight. Some disadvantages of measuring toxin binding by adding small amounts of radioactive toxin to compartively large amounts of tissue are discussed.