Noble metal nanostructures supporting localized surface plasmons (SPs) have been widely applied to chemical and biological sensing. Changes in the refractive index near the nanostructures affect the SP extinction band, making localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) spectroscopy a convenient tool for studying biological interactions. Carbohydrate-protein interactions are of major importance in living organisms; their study is crucial for understanding of basic biological processes and for the construction of biosensors for diagnostics and drug development. Here LSPR transducers based on gold island films prepared by evaporation on glass and annealing were optimized for monitoring the specific interaction between Concanavalin A (Con A) and D-(+)-mannose. The sugar was modified with a PEG-thiol linker and immobilized on the Au islands. Sensing assays were performed under stationary and flow conditions, the latter providing kinetic parameters for protein binding and dissociation. Ellipsometry and Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) data, as well as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging of fixated and stained samples, furnished independent evidence for the protein-sugar recognition. Enhanced response and visual detection of protein binding was demonstrated using Au nanoparticles stabilized with the linker-modified mannose molecules. Mannose-coated transducers display an excellent selectivity toward Con A in the presence of a large excess of bovine serum albumin (BSA).

Carbohydrates are integral to biological signaling networks and cell-cell interactions, yet the detection of discrete carbohydrate-lectin interactions remains difficult since binding is generally weak. A strategy to overcome this problem is to create multivalent sensors, where the avidity rather than the affinity of the interaction is important. Here we describe the development of a series of multivalent sensors that self-assemble via hydrophobic supramolecular interactions. The multivalent sensors are comprised of a fluorescent ruthenium(II) core surrounded by a heptamannosylated β-cyclodextrin scaffold. Two additional series of complexes were synthesized as proof-of-principle for supramolecular self-assembly, the fluorescent core alone and the core plus β-cyclodextrin. Spectroscopic analyses confirmed that the three mannosylated sensors displayed 14, 28, and 42 sugar units, respectively. Each complex adopted original and unique spatial arrangements. The sensors were used to investigate the influence of carbohydrate spatial arrangement and clustering on the mechanistic and qualitative properties of lectin binding. Simple visualization of binding between a fluorescent, multivalent mannose complex and the Escherichia coli strain ORN178 that possesses mannose-specific receptor sites illustrates the potential for these complexes as biosensors.

Interactions between glycans and glycan binding proteins are essential for numerous processes in all kingdoms of life. Glycan microarrays are an excellent tool to examine protein–glycan interactions. Here, we present a microbe-focused glycan microarray platform based on oligosaccharides obtained by chemical synthesis. Glycans were generated by combining different carbohydrate synthesis approaches including automated glycan assembly, solution-phase synthesis, and chemoenzymatic methods. The current library of more than 300 glycans is as diverse as the mammalian glycan array from the Consortium for Functional Glycomics and, due to its microbial focus, highly complementary. This glycan platform is essential for the characterization of various classes of glycan binding proteins. Applications of this glycan array platform are highlighted by the characterization of innate immune receptors and bacterial virulence factors as well as the analysis of human humoral immunity to pathogenic glycans.

Activation of the endothelium is a pivotal first step for leukocyte migration into the diseased brain. Consequently, imaging this activation process is highly desirable. We synthesized carbohydrate-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles that bind specifically to the endothelial transmembrane inflammatory proteins E and P selectin. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed that the targeted nanoparticles accumulated in the brain vasculature following acute administration into a clinically relevant animal model of stroke, though increases in selectin expression were observed in both brain hemispheres. Nonfunctionalized naked particles also appear to be a plausible agent to target the ischemic vasculature. The importance of these findings is discussed regarding the potential for translation into the clinic.

The disappearance of the hydrophobic effect in the gas phase due to the absence of an aqueous surrounding raises a long-standing question: can noncovalent complexes that are exclusively bound by hydrophobic interactions in solution be preserved in the gas phase? Some reports of successful detection by mass spectrometry of complexes largely stabilized by hydrophobic effect are questionable by the presence of electrostatic forces that hold them together in the gas phase. Here, we report on the MS-based analysis of model supramolecular complexes with a purely hydrophobic association in solution, β-cyclodextrin, and synthetic adamantyl-containing ligands with several binding sites. The stability of these complexes in the gas phase is investigated by quantum chemical methods . Compared with the free interaction partners, the inclusion complex between β-cyclodextrin and adamantyl-containing ligand is shown to be stabilized in the gas phase by ΔG = 9.6 kcal mol -1 . The host-guest association is mainly enthalpy-driven due to strong dispersion interactions caused by a large nonpolar interface and a high steric complementarity of the binding partners. Interference from other types of noncovalent binding forces is virtually absent. The complexes are successfully detected via electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, although a high dissociation yield is also observed. We attribute this pronounced dissociation of the complexes to the collisional activation of ions in the atmospheric interface of mass spectrometer. The comparison of several electrospray-based ionization methods reveals that cold spray ionization provides the softest ion generation conditions for these complexes.

The biological activity of catechol neurotransmitters such as dopamine in the synapse is modulated by transporters and enzymes. Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT; EC 2.1.1.6) inactivates neurotransmitters by catalyzing the transfer of a methyl group from S-adenosylmethionine to catechols in the presence of Mg²⁺. This pathway also inactivates L-DOPA, the standard therapeutic for Parkinson's disease. Depletion of catechol neurotransmitters in the prefrontal cortex has been linked to schizophrenia. The inhibition of COMT therefore promises improvements in the treatment of these diseases. The concept of bisubstrate inhibitors for COMT has been described previously. Here, ribose-modified bisubstrate inhibitors were studied. Three high-resolution crystal structures of COMT in complex with novel ribose-modified bisubstrate inhibitors confirmed the predicted binding mode but displayed subtle alterations at the ribose-binding site. The high affinity of the inhibitors can be convincingly rationalized from the structures, which document the possibility of removing and/or replacing the ribose 3'-hydroxyl group and provide a framework for further inhibitor design.

No abstract

A novel, digital, single-operation analytical method to study glycodendrimer-lectin interactions is described. Robust, highly fluorescent derivatives of tris(bipyridine)ruthenieum(II) ([Ru(bipy)(3)](2+)) bearing 2, 4, 6, or 18 mannose or galactose units were designed to perform molecular logic operations. Inputs for these systems were pH, N,N'-4,4'-bis(benzyl-2-boronic acid)bipyridinium dibromide, and different lectins (concanavalin A, Galantus nivalis agglutinin, and asialoglycoprotein). The relative change in fluorescence quantum yield of the Ru(II)-glycodendrimers served as output. Together, the fluorescent emission readout, the logic analysis of the photoinduced electron transfer, and the optical behavior provide a single-step method to quickly screen a glycodendrimer library and select the best dendrimer model for studying carbohydrate-lectin interactions.