Asparagine-linked oligosaccharides were isolated from normal and chronic leukemic leukocytes (normal neutrophils, normal lymphocytes, chronic myeloid, chronic lymphoid and hairy cell leukemic leukocytes) and analyzed by sequential lectin affinity column chromatography. The neutral and sialylated glycopeptides ranged in size from 1,800 to 4,000 da. on gel filtration. Sequential lectin affinity analysis was then used to fractionate the Asn-oligosaccharides into major structural classes of high mannose, hybrid, and bi-, tri- and tetraantennary complex structures. Using lectins of well defined specificity, the sequential chromatography provided a satisfactory means of assessing the overall glycopeptide profiles of the different leukocyte types. Results from 10 patient samples show that alterations in leukocyte Asn-oligosaccharides occur during leukemogenesis. Most notable was an average twofold increase in the relative amount of high mannose glycopeptides compared to complex glycopeptides for the leukemic cells. High mannose glycopeptides comprised 8.6 percent of the total lectin-adherent glycopeptides from leukemics, and 4.2 percent in the normals. In addition, carbohydrate analysis has revealed that the total amount of neutral hexose was markedly decreased in all leukemic samples. Leukemics ranged from 10.5 to 18.8, while normals ranged from 24.2 to 49.2 nanomole of hexose per 100 micrograms protein. The sialic acid content of the leukemic glycopeptides was relatively unchanged from that of normals, resulting in an apparent increase in the sialic acid: hexose ratio for all leukemic glycopeptides. The results suggest that in the leukemic cells, high mannose structures constitute a larger proportion of the total Asn-linked oligosaccharides, while the overall level of protein glycosylation is decreased. Complex multiantennary glycopeptides, when synthesized, tended to be more fully sialylated than their normal counterparts.