Loss of sialic acid side-chain -acetylation exacerbates colitis.

Sialic acids (Sias) are a diverse family of nine-carbon backbone monosaccharides occupying terminal positions on cell surface and secreted glycans and are abundant at mucosal surfaces. Sias can be modified with -acetyl esters on the side chain (C7 to C9) hydroxyls. Structural analysis and functional studies of these modifications are challenging due to chemical lability and variable resistance to sialidases.

An Augmented Method for Collecting PLGA Nanoparticles and the Fabrication of 1, 3, 4, 6-Tetra--acetyl-2-azido-2-deoxy-D-glucopyranose (Ac2AzGlc)-Loaded PLGA Nanoparticles for Efficient and Prospective Metabolic Processing.

We investigated two ways for fabricating 1, 3, 4, 6-tetra--acetyl-2-azido-2-deoxy-D-glucopyranose (Ac2AzGlc)-loaded poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) PLGA nanoparticles in this article : 1) single emulsion solvent evaporation and 2) the nanoprecipitation method. Among the available methods of collecting nanoparticles using an ultra-high-speed centrifuge, we improvised a less-known method for collecting synthesized nanoparticles without a high-speed centrifuge, based on molecular weight (MW)-dependent centrifugal filters. These nanoparticles were collected in a tabletop centrifuge at a meager centrifugal force in the range of 200-300 xg whereas the conventional high-speed centrifuge method for nanoparticle recovery results in a hard nanoparticle pellet with poor resuspendability which hampers the yield and outcomes of the product.

Chemical and biological methods for probing the structure and functions of polysialic acids.

Owing to its poly-anionic charge and large hydrodynamic volume, polysialic acid (polySia) attached to neural cell adhesion molecule regulates axon-axon and axon-substratum interactions and signalling, particularly, in the development of the central nervous system (CNS). Expression of polySia is spatiotemporally regulated by the action of two polysialyl transferases, namely ST8SiaII and ST8SiaIV. PolySia expression peaks during late embryonic and early post-natal period and maintained at a steady state in adulthood in neurogenic niche of the brain.

Carbohydrate-Neuroactive Hybrid Strategy for Metabolic Glycan Engineering of the Central Nervous System in Vivo.

Sialic acids are abundant in the central nervous system (CNS) and are essential for brain development, learning, and memory. Dysregulation in biosynthesis of sialo-glycoconjugates is known to be associated with neurological disorders, CNS injury, and brain cancer. Metabolic glycan engineering (MGE) and bioorthogonal ligation have enabled study of biological roles of glycans in vivo; however, direct investigations of sialoglycans in brain have been intractable.