Glycans News and Research

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Scientists use computer analysis to complete antibody blueprint

Antibodies defend our bodies against intruders. These molecules consist of proteins with attached sugars. However, the blueprint directing the processing of these sugars on the protein was not well understood until now.

30 Nov 2017

NIH awards $1.5 million grant to support education in Alzheimer's disease at RPI

We know Alzheimer's as a brutal disease that dismantles our loved ones and condemns them to death. But science and engineering researchers look inside the disease to identify early warning signs and develop the imaging techniques to see them, to unravel the biochemical puzzle that creates a toxic clump of misfolded proteins, and to develop and test new drugs and therapies that chip away at cognitive decline.

28 Sep 2017

New discovery by TSRI scientists could speed efforts to develop effective HIV vaccine

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have made a discovery that could speed efforts to develop a successful HIV vaccine.

14 Sep 2017

American scientists develop bioorthogonal labeling test to assess sialylated glycans in tumor cells

Glycosylated proteins are often overexpressed in tumor cells and thus could serve as tumor markers, especially those with the interesting molecule sialic acid as their sugar moiety.

28 Jun 2017

TSRI scientists develop novel method to analyze glycan shield on HIV’s glycoprotein

HIV is a master of disguise. The virus uses a shield of sugar molecules, called glycans, to hide from the immune system and block antibodies from attacking it.

28 Mar 2017

Scientists identify genetic clues to chronic kidney disease

Using international genomic studies backed by proof-of-concept cell experiments, researchers have identified two genes that contribute to the chronic kidney disease glomerulonephritis.

16 Mar 2017

New approach could make organometallic catalysis applicable for therapy or diagnostics

A gold catalyst can be delivered to a target organ in a higher organism where it performs a chemical transformation visualized by bioimaging.

17 Feb 2017

Scientists identify sugar molecule that reduces inflammatory response and COPD progression

Using a mouse model, scientists from the RIKEN-Max Planck Joint Research Center for Systems Chemical Biology and a number of other institutes have identified a sugar molecule that reduced the inflammatory response and progress of emphysema, a common component of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

27 Dec 2016

Researcher develops new method to accurately identify elusive molecules

Among the most important molecules in the living world are sugars or carbohydrates, which play a vital role in life processes. Sugars provide the main source of fuel for the body, protect muscles from damage and contribute to the immune response.

21 Dec 2016

NIH-funded scientists work with three ‘omes’ to understand human health

Have you ever collected coins, cards, toy trains, stuffed animals? Did you feel the need to complete the set? If so, then you may be a completist. A completist will go to great lengths to acquire a complete set of something.

17 Dec 2016

Okayama University researchers identify link between plant complex type N-glycans and hay fever

Okayama University researchers identify plants expressing substantial amounts of a nitrogen-linked polysaccharide – plant complex type N-glycans – which is linked to allergic responses in mammals, and may provide useful study models for understanding hay fever.

17 Dec 2016

Researchers develop new way to design glycoclusters for targeted drug delivery

A team led by researchers at the RIKEN Biofunctional Synthetic Chemistry Laboratory in Japan has developed a way to engineer glycan complexes--clusters of sugar chains attached to proteins or lipids--in a way that allows the molecules to be transported preferentially to specific organs of the body, depending on the sugar chains contained in the cluster.

29 Nov 2016

Antibody protection may help control infection caused by TB bacteria

A study led by investigators from the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard finds evidence that antibody protection may help control infection with the bacteria that causes tuberculosis (TB).

4 Oct 2016

Scientists identify new group of molecules that could slow tumour growth in prostate cancer patients

Prostate cancer patients have been offered hope after scientists at Newcastle University, UK, have identified a new group of molecules that could be targeted to slow tumour growth.

28 Jul 2016

New hydrogel-based biochip may help in early diagnosis of bowel cancer

Researchers from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, the Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry and a number of other Russian research centers have developed a new method of diagnosing colorectal cancer.

27 May 2016

Certain sugars in the body play key role in colitis, colon cancer development

An Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation scientist has discovered that certain sugars produced by the body play an important role in the development of colitis and, ultimately, colon cancer. The new finding could potentially lead to therapies for ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease and colon cancer.

5 May 2016

TSRI scientists track how HIV-fighting antibodies develop over time

In a new study, a team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute tracked how a family of these HIV-fighting antibodies develops over time. The research shows how a future vaccine might trigger the immune system to produce these antibodies more effectively.

16 Dec 2015

Biomedical scientists discover mechanism by which secreted proteins age

Physiological processes in the body are in large part determined by the composition of secreted proteins found in the circulatory systems, including the blood. Each of the hundreds of proteins in the blood has a specific life span that determines its unique range of abundance. In fact, measurements of their quantities and activities contribute to many clinical diagnoses.

20 Oct 2015

Glycan binding proteins modify parasite infection in cells of the heart muscle

Chagas disease is the main cause of infectious heart disease in Latin America. Researchers from the INGEBI and IBYME Institutes in Argentina explored the effect of glycan binding protein interactions between the human host and Typanosoma cruzi parasite. They found that a glycan binding protein expressed in humans modified the infection in cells of the heart muscle, showing the importance of galectins in the response to parasite infection.

12 Oct 2015

Agilent and BTI collaborate to address a critical need in biopharmaceutical industry

The collaboration will address a gap in analytical tests and standards applied for drugs based on glycoproteins, which now form the majority of approved biopharmaceutical drugs. Current analytical methods for characterizing glycans are time-consuming and difficult to deploy in commercial environments. They are also limited in their ability to detect and analyze minor glycan species.

15 Jul 2015