Cuticular carbohydrates of three nematode species and chemoreception by Trichostrongylus colubriformis.

The cuticle of Haemonchus contortus, Nippostrongylus brasiliensis and Trichostrongylus colubriformis contained N-acetylgalactosamine and N-acetylglucosamine, based on the binding of fluorescein-labelled lectins. Binding of the lectins varied between the sexes and body regions of the nematodes. Treatment of male T. colubriformis with the lectin Lens culinaris agglutinin (LcA) reduced the feeding by helminths that was stimulated by histamine and the male's response to their female's pheromone, based on in vitro assays. Mannose residues may be involved in the helminth's chemoreceptors for feeding and sexual attraction, based on the specific binding of LcA.