Synthetic glycobiology

Abstract

Re-engineering carbohydrates and carbohydrate-binding proteins for novel applications was the topic of a Royal Society Theo Murphy meeting at the Kavli Royal Society Centre, Chichelely Hall in Buckinghamshire, UK, 8–9 October 2018.

Synthetic Glycobiology: Parts, Systems, and Applications

“…On the microscale, engineering cell surfaces as a glycomaterial is emerging as a useful approach to control and study cellular behavior. 31 , 36 Cellular surfaces are coated in a thick layer of saccharides tethered to glycoproteins and glycolipids called the glycocalyx. Engineering the glycocalyx can be accomplished by chemoenzymatic remodeling of the cellular surface, 393 direct addition of glycomaterial substrates to cells, 394 , 395 or by engineering the cell to produce and display various glycoproteins.…”

“…Drawn by new opportunities to understand fundamental biology as well as compelling applications in medicine and materials, researchers have begun to use tools originally developed for metabolic engineering, genetic editing, protein engineering, and chemical biology to manipulate glycosylation. These lines of inquiry have recently coalesced to form the field of synthetic glycobiology − which, broadly defined, seeks to apply the tools of synthetic biology to the engineering and design of glycosylation systems. Because this field has advanced rapidly over recent years and involves a unique set of biological parts and methods compared to more traditional applications of synthetic biology, a systematic review is warranted.…”

“…We note that glycobiology and therefore synthetic glycobiology is a broad field, and there are important innovations in the areas of glycolipids, glycosylated natural products, glycomimetic systems, − free oligosaccharides, and cell-surface (glycocalyx) engineering that have been recently reviewed elsewhere. However, this review focuses on protein glycosylation because of its relevance to techniques (DNA assembly, transcription/translation control, genetic editing, metabolic engineering, etc .)…”

Engineering the Ligand Specificity of the Human Galectin‐1 by Incorporation of Tryptophan Analogues

“…They are ubiquitously found in all domains of life and find applications as biological tools, such as the purification of glycoproteins, detection of tumor markers, as biosensors or in high‐throughput microarrays and blotting applications [1–3] . Classic lectin research relies on identification of new specificity from natural sources, but with the advent of modern protein engineering, the new field of ‘synthetic glycobiology’ emerged [4,5] …”

Glycoenzyme Tool Development: Principles, Screening Methods, and Recent Advances†

“…The rapidly growing understanding of fundamental glycobiology coincides with the rise of synthetic biology generating synthetic glycobiology, a new research field that seeks to apply the tools of synthetic biology to the engineering and design of glycosylation systems, while embedding the principles of glycoscience into synthetic biology. [ 13 ] To understand fundamental glycobiology as well as compelling industrial or pharmaceutical applications, researchers have begun to develop novel enzymatic tools to manipulate glycosylation processes. [ 14 ] Evolved by nature, glycoenzymes can generate or degrade substrate‐specific glycosidic linkages under mild conditions, without the need for protection of undesired functional groups.…”