Expanding polysaccharide-protein coupling of glycoconjugate vaccines

For the preparation of glycoconjugate vaccines, polysaccharide antigens can usually be chemically modified to generate reactive functional groups (e.g., the formation of aldehyde groups by periodate oxidation of adjacent diols) for covalent coupling with proteins. In a recent issue of JBC, Duke et al. showed that an alternative agent, galactose oxidase (GOase) isolated from the fungus Fusarium sp. can generate aldehyde groups in a unique chemoenzymatic approach to prepare a conjugate vaccine against Streptococcus pneumoniae. These findings introduce a new strategy for the design and development of glycoconjugate vaccines.