Lipopolysaccharide-binding protein

Lipopolysaccharide-binding protein is a soluble blood serum protein that binds bacterial lipopolysaccharide and participates in its recognition by host cells. Binding the microbial material and producing a cellular response are distinct steps; the name does not imply that this one protein constitutes the entire signaling apparatus.

A 1990 study connected lipopolysaccharide-binding protein with the cell-surface protein CD14. The experiments identified recognition of lipopolysaccharide associated with lipopolysaccharide-binding protein; monoclonal antibodies blocking CD14 prevented the measured tumor necrosis factor response in the examined whole-blood setting.^[ref]

For an original experiment-design example, compare a fixed amount of lipopolysaccharide with and without a defined lipopolysaccharide-binding protein preparation, and measure both cell-associated material and a specified cytokine response. Include unstimulated controls and a separate CD14-blocking comparison. Increased binding and increased response are different observations and need not vary in the same proportion.

This distinction explains why detecting lipopolysaccharide-binding protein in a sample does not by itself quantify inflammation or microbial clearance. Interpretation depends on what was measured, which other recognition components were available and the experimental conditions.