Glycomics

The emerging field of glycomics focuses on the structure and function of glycans in a cell, tissue, organism, or other living system. Glycans are chained carbohydrates (oligo or polysaccharides) that are free or conjugated to macromolecules, such as proteins (referred to as glycoproteins) or lipids (referred to as glycolipids). They participate in a diverse array of biological processes (e.g., cell signaling, protein folding, immune recognition) and are implicated in a number of diseases (e.g., oncological, autoimmune, Alzheimer's). While analytical methodologies for their detection and sequencing have advanced, glycomics research has been hampered by the lack of commercially available standards and research tools.