The “Natural Strategy” for the glycosidase-assisted synthesis of simple glycosides

Chemo-Enzymatic Production of 4-Nitrophenyl-2-acetamido-2-deoxy-α-D-galactopyranoside Using Immobilized β-N-Acetylhexosaminidase

α-Nitrophenyl derivatives of glycosides are convenient substrates used to detect and characterize α-N-acetylgalactosaminidase. A new procedure combining chemical and biocatalytic steps was developed to prepare 4-nitrophenyl-2-acetamido-2-deoxy-α-D-galactopyranoside (4NP-α-GalNAc). The α-anomer was prepared through chemical synthesis of an anomeric mixture followed by selective removal of the β-anomer using specific enzymatic hydrolysis. Fungal β-N-acetylhexosaminidase (Hex) from Penicillium oxalicum CCF 1959 served this purpose owing to its high chemo-and regioselectivity towards the β-anomeric N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) derivative. The kinetic measurements of the hydrolytic reaction showed that the enzyme was not inhibited by the substrate or reaction products. The immobilization of Hex in lens-shaped polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel capsules provided a biocatalyst with very good storage and operational stability. The immobilized Hex retained 97% of the initial activity after ten repeated uses and 90% of the initial activity after 18 months of storage at 4 °C. Immobilization inactivated 65% of the enzyme activity. However, the effectiveness factor and kinetic and mass transfer phenomena approached unity indicating negligible mass transfer limitations.

Phenolic Compounds from the Aerial Parts of Malva verticillata and their Anti-diabetic Effect

The EtOAc, n-BuOH, and aqueous fractions from the aerial parts of Malva verticillata have been shown to promote significant recovery from alloxan-induced pancreatic islet (PI) damage in zebrafish larvae at 10 μg/mL. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the principal active components of these plant parts and their pharmacological properties. Repeated SiO2 and octadecyl SiO2 column chromatography with the aerial parts of M. verticillata led to isolation of four phenolic compounds; these compounds were identified as benzyl-α-D-galactopyranoside (1), (-)-secoisolariciresinol-9'-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (2), transferulic acid (3), and trans-ferulic acid methyl ester (4) on the basis of physicochemical and spectroscopic analyses including infrared, nuclear magnetic resonance, and fast atom bombardment-mass spectroscopy. Compounds 14 were first isolated from M. verticillata in this study. Furthermore, compounds 1–4 recovered alloxan-induced PI damage in zebrafish. Especially, compound 3 recovered the size of the injured PIs by 83.8% ( p=0.0007) compared to the alloxan-induced group, while compound 4 by 33.4% ( p=0.0072). It is the first report that trans-ferulic acid (3) exhibited the protective effect on zebrafish larvae PIs damaged by alloxan.

Hooked on α-d-galactosidases: from biomedicine to enzymatic synthesis

α-d-Galactosidases (EC 3.2.1.22) are enzymes employed in a number of useful bio-based applications. We have depicted a comprehensive general survey of α-d-galactosidases from different origin with special emphasis on marine example(s). The structures of natural α-galactosyl containing compounds are described. In addition to 3D structures and mechanisms of action of α-d-galactosidases, different sources, natural function and genetic regulation are also covered. Finally, hydrolytic and synthetic exploitations as free or immobilized biocatalysts are reviewed. Interest in the synthetic aspects during the next years is anticipated for access to important small molecules by green technology with an emphasis on alternative selectivity of this class of enzymes from different sources.

Beam pen lithography as a new tool for spatially controlled photochemistry, and its utilization in the synthesis of multivalent glycan arrays

Herein, we describe how cantilever-free scanning probes can be used to deposit precursor material and subsequently irradiate the precursor to initiate polymerization, resulting in a 3D lithographic method wherein the position, height and diameter of each feature can be tuned independently. Specifically, acrylate and methacrylate monomers were patterned onto thiol terminated glass and subsequently exposed to UV light produced brush polymers by a photoinduced radical acrylate polymerization reaction. Here, we report the first examples of glycan arrays, comprised of methacrylate brush polymers that are side-chain functionalized with α-glucose, by this new lithographic approach. Their binding with fluorophore labeled concanavalin A (ConA) was assayed by fluorescence microscopy. The fluorescence of these brush polymers was compared to glycan arrays composed of monolayers of α-mannosides and α-glucosides prepared by combining polymer pen lithography (PPL) with the thiol-ene photochemical reaction or the copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition. At high ConA concentration, the fluorescence signal of the brush polymer was nearly 20 times greater than that of the glycan monolayers, and the brush polymer arrays had a detection limit nearly two orders of magnitude better than their monolayer counterparts. Because of the ability of this method to control precisely the polymer length, the relationship between limit of detection and multivalency could be explored, and it was found that the longer polymers (136 nm) are an order of magnitude more sensitive towards ConA binding than the shorter polymers (8 nm) and that binding affinity decreased systematically with length. These glycan arrays are a new tool to study the role of multivalency on carbohydrate recognition, and the photopolymerization route towards forming multivalent glycan scaffolds described herein, is a promising route to create multiplexed glycan arrays with nanoscale feature dimensions.

Preparative production and separation of 2-acetamido-2-deoxymannopyranoside-containing saccharides using borate-saturated polyolic exclusion gels

A new separation method based on the combination of exclusion and ion exchange chromatography in borate buffer was developed. It allows semi-preparatory and preparatory separation of isobaric N-acylhexosamines (C-2 epimers) and corresponding methyl glycosides (anomers and tautomers). Three types of polyolic gels were tested for these separations. Ion-exchange HPLC was used as a rapid and reliable method for the quantification of the respective analytes. NMR studies of the interactions of N-acetylhexosamines with borate confirmed the importance of a proper stereochemical arrangement of acetamido sugars for their interactions with borate anions.

Regiospecific synthesis of lactose analog Gal-(β 1,4)-Xyl by transgalactosylation

A short enzymatic synthesis of disaccharide 4-O-β-D-galactopyranosyl-D-xylose (1) has been developed, which is of interest as a lactose analog for a non-invasive medicinal determination of lactose intolerance. The starting material, benzyl α-D-xyloside, was obtained by a Fischer-type glycosidation of D-xylose with benzyl alcohol, followed by anomeric differentiation of mixed glycosides using a glycosidase from Aspergillus oryzae. From several commercial β-galactosidases, which were screened for their transgalactosylation capacity, the enzyme from Escherichia coli was found to catalyze a virtually regio- and stereospecific galactosyl transfer from donor compounds o-nitrophenyl β-D-galactoside or lactose to the α-D-xyloside. Subsequent hydrogenolytic deprotection furnished desired disaccharide 1.Key words: oligosaccharide synthesis, β-galactosidase, lactose intolerance.