Cracking the Glycocode: Finding the Signal in the Noise

Abstract

Glycans both encode cellular information, such as cell‐cell interactions and cell state (Signal), and must avoid being targeted by pathogens (Noise). This leads to a system in which the sugar code (i.e. the glycan motifs controlling function) is hidden within the noisy milleu of larger heterogenous glycan structures. This talk focuses on use of high‐throughput analytical methods, including our lectin microarray technology and newly developed miRNA‐proxy approach, in tandem with data integration, to decode structure‐function relationships in the glycome. Our work is identifying glycan drivers of biological function including those involved in melanoma metastasis and host‐response to pathogens (e.g. HIV‐1 and influenza), providing a host of new targets for small molecule intervention in these disease states.Support or Funding InformationThis work is supported by: NIH (1U01CA221229‐01, U01 AI111598) and the Melanoma Research Foundation.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.