Synthetic heparin fragments: new and efficient tools for the study of heparin and its interactions

In order to investigate the specificity of heparin-antithrombin binding and to precisely define the nature of the structural requirements in heparin, we have synthesized several oligosaccharides and have assessed their affinity for antithrombin. These compounds are also very useful for the investigation of heparin structure as they provide valuable standards to calibrate new techniques used in structural studies.