Glycobiology & Glycochemistry

Glycans in Diseases and Therapeutics

Glycans are saccharides that can be attached to a wide variety of biological molecules through an enzymatic process called glycosylation to augment their function. One of the four fundamental building blocks of life, proteins, carbohydrates (glycans), lipids and nucleic acids, glycans have received the least attention from researchers. Glycans are the predominant molecule on the cell surface and serve as the first point of contact between a cell and other cells, the extracellular matrix and pathogens. The heightened evolutionary pressure of being at the front lines of cellular collaboration and conflict most likely led to the diversification of glycans. Glyco-epitope diversity enhances the role of glycans in the group of debilitating and life-shortening disorders known as congenital muscular dystrophy, or CMD.