Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 19, 2025
07:12
Author Spotlight: MAPP Protocol – Advancing Glycan Analysis
Published on: September 29, 2023
2.1K
Identification microbial glycans substructure associate with disease and species
Kun Li1, Xiaoyu Liu1, Xunlian Zhang1
1State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong University, Qingdao, Shandong 266237, China.
Carbohydrate Polymers
|September 25, 2021
Summary
Microbial glycans play key roles in infections. Analyzing structures in the Carbohydrate Structure Database (CSDB) revealed shared glycan substructures across microorganisms, aiding pathogen detection and vaccine development.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Glycobiology
- Bioinformatics
Background:
- Microbial glycans are crucial for pathogen survival, host interactions, and immune evasion.
- Studying microbial glycan structure is complex due to high variability and complexity.
- Understanding these structures is vital for developing new diagnostics and therapeutics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically analyze microbial glycan structures and their substructures.
- To identify shared glycan substructures among different microorganisms.
- To explore the relationship between glycan substructures and microbial species/pathogenicity.
Main Methods:
- Screening of microbial glycans structures within the Carbohydrate Structure Database (CSDB).
- Disassembly of complex glycans into constituent substructures.
- Quantitative analysis of glycan substructure occurrences.
Main Results:
- A significant number of glycan substructures are shared across diverse microorganisms.
- Specific glycan substructures correlate with particular bacterial groups, species, and pathogenicity.
- Identification of common patterns in microbial glycan composition.
Conclusions:
- Shared glycan substructures offer insights into microbial biology and function.
- This approach provides a novel method for discovering hidden information within glycans.
- Findings support the development of broad-spectrum pathogen detection and vaccines.
Related Concept Videos
01:05Proteoglycans
4.1K
Glycans, a class of complex heterogeneous molecules, can be covalently attached to proteins to form glycosylated proteins that regulate various physiological and pathological processes. Glycosylated proteins or glycoproteins comprise N-linked and O-linked oligosaccharides. O-glycosylation is the most common type of protein glycosylation. Here, glycans attach to the oxygen atom of the hydroxyl groups of Serine or Threonine residues. O-linked glycosylation occurs later in protein processing,...
4.1K
01:25Protein Glycosylation
7.8K
Glycosylation, the most common post-translational modification for proteins, serves diverse functions. Adding sugars to proteins makes the proteins more resistant to proteolytic digestion. Glycosylated proteins can act as markers and receptors to promote cell-cell adhesion. Additionally, they have many essential quality control functions in the cell, such as correct protein folding and facilitating transport of misfolded proteins to the cytosol, which can be degraded.
Glycosylation occurs in...
Glycosylation occurs in...
7.8K
01:24Oligosaccharide Assembly
3.1K
Protein glycosylation starts in the ER lumen and continues in the Golgi apparatus. Glycosyltransferases catalyze the addition of sugar molecules or glycosylation of proteins. Usually, these enzymes add sugars to the hydroxyl groups of selected serine or threonine residues to form O-linked glycans or the amino groups of asparagine residues to form N-linked glycans. Different positions on the same polypeptide chain can contain differently linked glycans.
Multiple sugar molecules that may or may...
Multiple sugar molecules that may or may...
3.1K
01:14Glycocalyx and its Functions
6.5K
The glycocalyx is a carbohydrate-rich, fuzzy-appearing layer on the outer surface of the cell membrane. It is highly hydrophilic, because of this it attracts large amounts of water to the cell's surface. This aids the cell's interaction with the watery environment and also helps it to obtain substances dissolved in the water. It is also important for cell identification, self/non-self determination, and embryonic development and is used in cell-to-cell attachments to form tissues.
6.5K
01:29Modern Molecular Taxonomy
280
Advancements in molecular biology have revolutionized the identification and characterization of bacteria, with multiple methods leveraging DNA sequencing for enhanced precision. As sequencing technologies improve and costs decline, these approaches are increasingly used in clinical, environmental, and evolutionary studies.Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST) examines several housekeeping genes, essential chromosomal genes encoding cellular functions, to distinguish strains. Approximately...
280
01:28Methods of Classification and Identification
341
Bacterial identification relies on a diverse array of techniques to classify and understand microorganisms, each tailored to uncover specific characteristics. Traditional morphological approaches, while still valuable, are limited for closely related or structurally simple organisms. Modern methods integrate biochemical, serological, genetic, and advanced molecular tools to achieve greater accuracy.Morphological and Biochemical TechniquesMorphological characteristics, such as cell shape and...
341