Lectin vs. Lecithin — What's the Difference?

A carbohydrate-binding protein.

A fatty substance in animal and plant tissues.

An immune response facilitator in plants.

A supplement for cognitive and cardiovascular health.

A potential anti-nutrient in certain diets.

An emulsifier in food production.

A specific glycoprotein that can bind to cell membranes.

A component of cell membranes.

A plant protein that can agglutinate red blood cells.

Lecithin (, from the Greek lekithos "yolk") is a generic term to designate any group of yellow-brownish fatty substances occurring in animal and plant tissues which are amphiphilic – they attract both water and fatty substances (and so are both hydrophilic and lipophilic), and are used for smoothing food textures, emulsifying, homogenizing liquid mixtures, and repelling sticking materials.Lecithins are mixtures of glycerophospholipids including phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol, phosphatidylserine, and phosphatidic acid.Lecithin was first isolated in 1845 by the French chemist and pharmacist Théodore Gobley. In 1850, he named the phosphatidylcholine lécithine.

Lectins are carbohydrate-binding proteins that are highly specific for sugar groups that are part of other molecules, so cause agglutination of particular cells or precipitation of glycoconjugates and polysaccharides. Lectins have a role in recognition at the cellular and molecular level and play numerous roles in biological recognition phenomena involving cells, carbohydrates, and proteins.

Any of various substances containing phosphatidylcholine and a variety of other phospholipids, extracted from soybeans, egg yolks, or other sources and used as emulsifiers in a wide range of commercial products, including foods, cosmetics, paints, and plastics.

Any of various proteins or glycoproteins that bind selectively to specific sugar moieties of glycoproteins and glycolipids on the surfaces of cells and are found in most organisms, especially plants. They are used to stimulate lymphocyte proliferation and to agglutinate red blood cells.

See phosphatidylcholine.

(protein) Any of a class of proteins that bind specific carbohydrates.

(organic chemistry) The principal phospholipid in animals; it is particularly abundant in egg yolks, and is extracted commercially from soy. It is a major constituent of cell membranes, and is commonly used as a food additive (as an emulsifier).

Any of several plant glycoproteins that act like specific antibodies but are not antibodies in that they are not evoked by an antigenic stimulus

A complex, nitrogenous phosphorized substance widely distributed through the animal body, and especially conspicuous in the brain and nerve tissue, in yolk of eggs, and in the white blood corpuscles.

A yellow phospholipid essential for the metabolism of fats; found in egg yolk and in many plant and animal cells; used commercially as an emulsifier

A commercial additive in moisturizers and paints.