Oligosaccharide Synthesis and Translational Innovation

Zinc Tetrafluoroborate Catalyzed Stereo- and Regioselective O-Glycosylation for the Direct Synthesis of β-Glycosides from Armed O-Glycosyl Trichloroacetimidates

Efficient stereo- and regioselective O-glycosylation methods remain essential to capacitate the studies of sugars and sugar derivatives in various disciplines. In this work, we demonstrated an operationally simple and cost-effective strategy for the synthesis of 1,2-trans glycosides by the activation of armed O-glycosyl trichloroacetimidates donor using zinc tetrafluoroborate. This mild, transition metal-free, and scalable approach allowed stereo- and regioselective synthesis of β-glycosides with a wide range of acceptors containing various protecting groups/functionalities. This method is exemplified by synthesizing a branched trisaccharide fragment related to the cell wall O-polysaccharide of E. Coli O27.

Glycosylation of 2-(2-Propylsulfinyl)benzyl 1,2-Orthoester Glycosides Initiated by Sulfoxide Activation

We have developed a highly effective glycosylation method that involves the activation of 2-(2-propylsulfinyl)benzyl 1,2-orthoester glycosides using triflic anhydride (Tf2O). Our research indicates that half of the glycosyl donor is activated through Tf2O via an interrupted Pummerer reaction mechanism, while the remaining portion is activated by triflic acid (TfOH) generated in situ. As a result, as little as 0.5 equiv of Tf2O is adequate for activating the orthoester glycoside donors. This glycosylation procedure offers several benefits, such as high efficiency, wide applicability, and the utilization of a recyclable leaving group.

Evidence of Gas Phase Glucosyl Transfer and Glycation in the CID/HCD-Spectra of S-Glucosylated Peptides

Protein cysteine S-glycosylation is a relatively rare and less well characterized post-translational modification (PTM). Creating reliable model proteins that carry this modification is challenging. The lack of available models or natural S-glycosylated proteins significantly hampers the development of mass-spectrometry-based (MS-based) methodologies for detecting protein cysteine S-glycosylation in real-world proteomic studies. There is also limited MS-sequencing data describing it as easier to create synthetic S-glycopeptides. Here, we present the results of an in-depth manual analysis of automatically annotated CID/HCD spectra for model S-glucopeptides. The CID spectra show a long series of y/b-fragment ions with retained S-glucosylation, regardless of the dominant m/z signals corresponding to neutral loss of 1,2-anhydroglucose from the precursor ions. In addition, the spectra show signals manifesting glucosyl transfer from the cysteine position onto lysine, arginine (Lys, Arg) side chains, and a peptide N-terminus. Other spectral evidence indicates that the N-glucosylated initial products of transfer are converted into N-fructosylated (i.e., glycated) structures due to Amadori rearrangement. We discuss the peculiar transfer of the glucose oxocarbenium ion (Glc+) to positively charged guanidinium residue (ArgH+) and propose a mechanism for the gas-phase Amadori rearrangement involving a 1,2-hydride ion shift.

Chemical and Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Peptide and Protein Therapeutics Conjugated with Human N-Glycans

Glycosylation is one of the most ubiquitous post-translational modifications. It affects the structure and function of peptides/proteins and consequently has a significant impact on various biological events. However, the structural complexity and heterogeneity of glycopeptides/proteins caused by the diversity of glycan structures and glycosylation sites complicates the detailed elucidation of glycan function and hampers their clinical applications. To address these challenges, chemical and/or enzyme-assisted synthesis methods have been developed to realize glycopeptides/proteins with well-defined glycan morphologies. In particular, N-glycans are expected to be useful for improving the solubility, in vivo half-life and aggregation of bioactive peptides/proteins that have had limited clinical applications so far due to their short duration of action in the blood and unsuitable physicochemical properties. Chemical glycosylation performed in a post-synthetic procedure can be used to facilitate the development of glycopeptide/protein analogues or mimetics that are superior to the original molecules in terms of physicochemical and pharmacokinetic properties. N-glycans are used to modify targets because they are highly biodegradable and biocompatible and have structures that already exist in the human body. On the practical side, from a quality control perspective, close attention should be paid to their structural homogeneity when they are to be applied to pharmaceuticals.

Trivalent dialkylaminopyridine-catalyzed site-selective mono-O-acylation of partially-protected pyranosides

This work demonstrates trivalent tris-(3-N-methyl-N-pyridyl propyl)amine (1) catalyzing the site-selective mono-O-acylation of glycopyranosides. Different acid anhydrides were used for the acylation of monosaccharides, mediated by catalyst 1, at a loading of 1.5 mol%; the extent of site-selectivity and the yields of mono-O-acylation products were assessed. The reactions were performed between 2 and 10 h, depending on the nature of the acid anhydride, where the bulkier pivalic anhydride required a longer duration for acylation. The glycopyranosides are maintained as diols and triols, and from a set of experiments, the site-selectivity of acylations was observed to follow the intrinsic reactivities and stereochemistry of hydroxy functionalities. The trivalent catalyst 1 mediates the reactions with excellent site-selectivities for mono-O-acylation product formation in the studied glycopyranosides, in comparison to the monovalent N,N-dimethylamino pyridine (DMAP) catalyst. This study illustrates the benefits of the multivalency of catalytic moieties in catalysis.

Total Synthesis of Nona-decasaccharide Motif from Ganoderma sinense Polysaccharide Enabled by Modular and One-Pot Stereoselective Glycosylation Strategy

Polysaccharides from a medicinal fungus Ganoderma sinense represent important and adjunctive therapeutic agents for treating various diseases, including leucopenia and hematopoietic injury. However, the synthetic accessibility to long, branched, and complicated carbohydrates chains from Ganoderma sinense polysaccharides remains a challenging task in chemical synthesis. Here, we report the modular chemical synthesis of nona-decasaccharide motif from Ganoderma sinense polysaccharide GSPB70-S with diverse biological activities for the first time through one-pot stereoselective glycosylation strategy on the basis of glycosyl ortho-(1-phenyvinyl)benzoates, which not only sped up carbohydrates synthesis but also reduced chemical waste and avoided aglycones transfer issues inherent to one-pot glycosylation on the basis of thioglycosides. The synthetic route also highlights the following key steps: (1) preactivation-based one-pot glycosylation for highly stereoselective constructions of several 1,2-cis-glycosidic linkages, including three α-d-GlcN-(1 → 4) linkages and one α-d-Gal-(1 → 4) bond via the reagent N-methyl-N-phenylformamide modulation; (2) orthogonal one-pot assembly of 1,2-trans-glycosidic linkages in various linear and branched glycans fragments by strategic combinations of glycosyl N-phenyltrifluoroacetimidates, glycosyl ortho-alkynylbenzoates, and glycosyl ortho-(1-phenyvinyl)benzoates; and (3) the final [1 × 4 + 15] Yu glycosylation for efficient assembly of nona-decasaccharide target. Additionally, shorter sequences of 4-mer, 5-mer, and 6-mer are also prepared for structure-activity relationship biological studies. The present work shows that this one-pot stereoselective glycosylation strategy can offer a reliable and effective means to streamline chemical synthesis of long, branched, and complex carbohydrates with many 1,2-cis-glycosidic bonds.

Donor Preactivation-Based Glycan Assembly: from Manual to Automated Synthesis

Carbohydrates are called the third chain of life. Carbohydrates participate in many important biochemical functions in living species, and the biological information carried by them is several orders of magnitude larger than that of nucleic acids and proteins. However, due to the intrinsic complexity and heterogeneity of carbohydrate structures, furnishing pure and structurally well-defined glycans for functional studies is a formidable task, especially for homogeneous large-size glycans. To address this issue, we have developed a donor preactivation-based one-pot glycosylation strategy enabling multiple sequential glycosylations in a single reaction vessel.The donor preactivation-based one-pot glycosylation refers to the strategy in which the glycosyl donor is activated in the absence of a glycosyl acceptor to generate a reactive intermediate. Subsequently, the glycosyl acceptor with the same anomeric leaving group is added, leading to a glycosyl coupling reaction, which is then iterated to rapidly achieve the desired glycan in the same reactor. The advantages of this strategy include the following: (1) unique chemoselectivity is obtained after preactivation; (2) it is independent of the reactivity of glycosyl donors; (3) multiple-step glycosylations are enabled without the need for intermediate purification; (4) only stoichiometric building blocks are required without complex protecting group manipulations. Using this protocol, a range of glycans including tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens, various glycosaminoglycans, complex N-glycans, and diverse bacterial glycans have been synthesized manually. Gratifyingly, the synthesis of mycobacterial arabinogalactan containing 92 monosaccharide units has been achieved, which created a precedent in the field of polysaccharide synthesis. Recently, the synthesis of a highly branched arabinogalactan from traditional Chinese medicine featuring 140 monosaccharide units has been also accomplished to evaluate its anti-pancreatic-cancer activity. In the spirit of green and sustainable chemistry, this strategy can also be applied to light-driven glycosylation reactions, where either UV or visible light can be used for the activation of glycosyl donors.Automated synthesis is an advanced approach to the construction of complex glycans. Based on the two preactivation modes (general promoter activation mode and light-induced activation mode), a universal and highly efficient automated solution-phase synthesizer was further developed to drive glycan assembly from manual to automated synthesis. Using this synthesizer, a library of oligosaccharides covering various glycoforms and glycosidic linkages was assembled rapidly, either in a general promoter-activation mode or in a light-induced-activation mode. The automated synthesis of a fully protected fondaparinux pentasaccharide was realized on a gram scale. Furthermore, the automated synthesis of large-size polysaccharides was performed, allowing the assembly of arabinans up to an astonishing 1080-mer using the automated multiplicative synthesis strategy, taking glycan synthesis to a new height far beyond the synthesis of nucleic acids (up to 200-mer) and proteins (up to 472-mer).

Reaction Rate and Stereoselectivity Enhancement in Glycosidations with O-Glycosyl Trihaloacetimidate Donors due to Catalysis by a Lewis Acid-Nitrile Cooperative Effect

Activation of O-glycosyl trihaloacetimidate glycosyl donors with AuCl3 as a catalyst and pivalonitrile (tBuCN) as a ligand led to excellent glycosidation results in terms of yield and anomeric selectivity. In this way, various β-d-gluco- and β-d-galactopyranosides were obtained conveniently and efficiently. Experimental studies and density functional theory (DFT) calculations, in order to elucidate the reaction course, support formation of the tBuCN-AuCl2-OR(H)+ AuCl4- complex as a decisive intermediate in the glycosidation event. Proton transfer from this acceptor complex to the imidate nitrogen leads to donor activation. In this way, guided by the C-2 configuration of the glycosyl donor, the alignment of the acceptor complex enforces the stereoselective β-glycoside formation in an intramolecular fashion, thus promoting also a fast reaction course. The high stereocontrol of this novel 'Lewis acid-nitrile cooperative effect' is independent of the glycosyl donor anomeric configuration and without the support of neighboring group or remote group participation. The power of the methodology is shown by a successful glycoalkaloid solamargine synthesis.

Highly stereoselective α-glycosylation with GalN3 donors enabled collective synthesis of mucin-related tumor associated carbohydrate antigens

Mucin-related tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs) are important and interesting targets for cancer vaccine therapy. However, efficient access to a library of mucin-related TACAs remains a challenging task. One of the key issues is the challenging construction of α-GalNAc linkages. Here, we report highly stereoselective α-glycosylation with GalN3N-phenyl trifluoroacetimidate donors, which features excellent yields, outstanding stereoselectivities, broad substrate scope and mild reaction conditions. This method is successfully applied to highly stereoselective synthesis of GalN3-α-O-Ser, which served as the common intermediate for collective synthesis of a wide range of TACAs including TN antigen, STN antigen, 2,6 STF antigen, 2,3 STF antigen, glycophorin and cores 1-8 mucin-type O-glycans. In particular, the rationale for this highly stereoselective α-glycosylation is provided for the first time using DFT calculations and mechanistic studies, highlighting the crucial roles of reagent combinations (TMSI and Ph3PO) and the H-bonding directing effect of the N3 group.

Research of saccharides and related biocomplexes: A review with recent techniques and applications

Saccharides and biocompounds as saccharide (sugar) complexes have various roles and biological functions in living organisms due to modifications via nucleophilic substitution, polymerization, and complex formation reactions. Mostly, mono-, di-, oligo-, and polysaccharides are stabilized to inactive glycosides, which are formed in metabolic pathways. Natural saccharides are important in food and environmental monitoring. Glycosides with various functionalities are significant in clinical and medical research. Saccharides are often studied with the chromatographic methods of hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography and anion exchange chromatograpy, but also with capillary electrophoresis and mass spectrometry with their on-line coupling systems. Sample preparation is important in the identification of saccharide compounds. The cases discussed here focus on bioscience, clinical, and food applications.

Engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a Biosynthetic Platform of Nucleotide Sugars

Glycosylation of biomolecules can greatly alter their physicochemical properties, cellular recognition, subcellular localization, and immunogenicity. Glycosylation reactions rely on the stepwise addition of sugars using nucleotide diphosphate (NDP)-sugars. Making these substrates readily available will greatly accelerate the characterization of new glycosylation reactions, elucidation of their underlying regulation mechanisms, and production of glycosylated molecules. In this work, we engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae to heterologously express nucleotide sugar synthases to access a wide variety of uridine diphosphate (UDP)-sugars from simple starting materials (i.e., glucose and galactose). Specifically, activated glucose, uridine diphosphate d-glucose (UDP-d-Glc), can be converted to UDP-d-glucuronic acid (UDP-d-GlcA), UDP-d-xylose (UDP-d-Xyl), UDP-d-apiose (UDP-d-Api), UDP-d-fucose (UDP-d-Fuc), UDP-l-rhamnose (UDP-l-Rha), UDP-l-arabinopyranose (UDP-l-Arap), and UDP-l-arabinofuranose (UDP-l-Araf) using the corresponding nucleotide sugar synthases of plant and microbial origins. We also expressed genes encoding the salvage pathway to directly activate free sugars to achieve the biosynthesis of UDP-l-Arap and UDP-l-Araf. We observed strong inhibition of UDP-d-Glc 6-dehydrogenase (UGD) by the downstream product UDP-d-Xyl, which we circumvented using an induction system (Tet-On) to delay the production of UDP-d-Xyl to maintain the upstream UDP-sugar pool. Finally, we performed a time-course study using strains containing the biosynthetic pathways to produce five non-native UDP-sugars to elucidate their time-dependent interconversion and the role of UDP-d-Xyl in regulating UDP-sugar metabolism. These engineered yeast strains are a robust platform to (i) functionally characterize sugar synthases in vivo, (ii) biosynthesize a diverse selection of UDP-sugars, (iii) examine the regulation of intracellular UDP-sugar interconversions, and (iv) produce glycosylated secondary metabolites and proteins.

Metal-Assisted Carbohydrate Assembly

The sequence-controlled assembly of nucleic acids and amino acids into well-defined superstructures constitutes one of the most revolutionary technologies in modern science. The elaboration of such superstructures from carbohydrates, however, remains elusive and largely unexplored on account of their intrinsic constitutional and configurational complexity, not to mention their inherent conformational flexibility. Here, we report the bottom-up assembly of two classes of hierarchical superstructures that are formed from a highly flexible cyclo-oligosaccharide─namely, cyclofructan-6 (CF-6). The formation of coordinative bonds between the oxygen atoms of CF-6 and alkali metal cations (i) locks a myriad of flexible conformations of CF-6 into a few rigid conformations, (ii) bridges adjacent CF-6 ligands, and (iii) gives rise to the multiple-level assembly of three extended frameworks. The hierarchical superstructures present in these frameworks have been shown to modulate their nanomechanical properties. This research highlights the unique opportunities of constructing convoluted superstructures from carbohydrates and should encourage future endeavors in this underinvestigated field of science.

Thiourea-Cu(OTf)2/NIS-synergistically promoted stereoselective glycoside formation with 2-azidoselenoglycosides or thioglycosides as donors

A novel promoter system for glycosylation is described. A catalytic amount of thiourea and Cu(OTf)2 together with a slight excess of N-iodosuccinimide synergistically promotes glycosylation at room temperature. The combination of reagents applies to some 2-azidoselenoglycoside and thioglycoside donors. A wide range of alcoholic acceptors underwent smooth conversion to O-(2-azido)glycosides with good stereoselectivities. In addition, the value of this method has been highlighted by its convenient operation and outstanding functional group compatibility.

Highly Stereoselective Synthesis of Branched Fructooligosaccharides ABW90-1 and ABW50-1 from Achyranthes bidentata with Potent Antiosteoporosis Activities

The branched fructooligosaccharides ABW90-1 and ABW50-1 from Achyranthes bidentata with potent antiosteoporosis activities have been synthesized for the first time. The synthetic approach highlights the following features: (1) 6-O-picoloyl-directed β-d-fructofuranosylation via a hydrogen-bond-mediated aglycone delivery strategy for the highly stereoselective constructions of β-(2 → 6)-d-fructofuranosidic linkages and β-(2 → 1)-d-fructofuranosidic linkages in the internal positions under the reaction conditions (DBDMH, -20 °C, CH2Cl2) and (2) the reaction conditions (DBDMH, -78 °C to -35 °C, toluene) for highly stereoselective formations of β-(2 → 1)-d-fructofuranosidic linkages in the terminal positions.

One-Pot Assembly of Mannose-Capped Lipoarabinomannan Motifs up to 101-Mer from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Cell Wall

Lipoarabinomannan (LAM) from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis cell envelope represents important targets for the development of new therapeutic agents against tuberculosis, which is a deadly disease that has plagued mankind for a long time. However, the accessibility of long, branched, and complex lipoarabinomannan over 100-mer remains a long-standing challenge. Herein, we report the modular synthesis of mannose-capped lipoarabinomannan 101-mer from the M. tuberculosis cell wall using a one-pot assembly strategy on the basis of glycosyl ortho-(1-phenylvinyl)benzoates (PVB), which not only accelerates the modular synthesis but also precludes the potential problems associated with one-pot glycosylation with thioglycosides. Shorter sequences including 18-mer, 19-mer, and 27-mer are also synthesized for in-depth structure-activity relationship biological studies. Current synthetic routes also highlight the following features: (1) streamlined synthesis of various linear and branched glycans using one-pot orthogonal glycosylation on the combination of glycosyl N-phenyltrifluoroacetimidates, glycosyl ortho-alkynylbenzoates, and glycosyl PVB; (2) highly stereoselective construction of 10 1,2-cis-arabinofuranosyl linkages using 5-O-(2-quinolinecarbonyl)-directing 1,2-cis-arabinofuranosylation via a hydrogen-bond-mediated aglycone delivery strategy; and (3) convergent [(18 + 19) × 2 + 27] one-pot synthesis of the 101-mer LAM polysaccharide. The present work demonstrates that this orthogonal one-pot glycosylation strategy can highly streamline the chemical synthesis of long, branched, and complex polysaccharides.

Recent advances in enzymatic and chemoenzymatic synthesis of N- and O-glycans

Glycosylation is one of the most common post-translational modifications of proteins, which plays essential roles in regulating the biological functions of proteins. Efficient and versatile methods for the synthesis of homogeneous and well-defined N- and O-glycans remain an urgent need for biological studies and biomedical applications. Despite their structural complexity, tremendous progress has been made in the synthesis of N- and O-glycans in recent years. This review discusses some recent advances in the enzymatic and chemoenzymatic synthesis of N- and O-glycans.

Synthesis of sialyl halides with various acyl protective groups

Glycosyl halides are historically one of the first glycosyl donors used in glycosylation reactions, and interest in glycosylation reactions involving this class of glycosyl donors is currently increasing. New methods for their activation have been proposed and effective syntheses of oligosaccharides with their participation have been developed. At the same time, the possibilities of using these approaches to the synthesis of sialosides are restricted by the limited diversity of known sialyl halides (previously, mainly sialyl chlorides, less often sialyl bromides and sialyl fluorides, with acetyl (Ac) groups at the oxygen atoms and AcNH, Ac2N and N3 groups at C-5 were used). This work describes the synthesis of six new N-acetyl- and N-trifluoroacetyl-sialyl chlorides and bromides with O-chloroacetyl and O-trifluoroacetyl protective groups. Preparation of N,O-trifluoroacetyl protected derivatives was made possible due to development of the synthesis of sialic acid methyl ester pentaol with N-trifluoroacetyl group.

α-L-Fucosidases from an Alpaca Faeces Metagenome: Characterisation of Hydrolytic and Transfucosylation Potential

In various life forms, fucose-containing glycans play vital roles in immune recognition, developmental processes, plant immunity, and host-microbe interactions. Together with glucose, galactose, N-acetylglucosamine, and sialic acid, fucose is a significant component of human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs). Fucosylated HMOs benefit infants by acting as prebiotics, preventing pathogen attachment, and potentially protecting against infections, including HIV. Although the need for fucosylated derivatives is clear, their availability is limited. Therefore, synthesis methods for various fucosylated oligosaccharides are explored, employing enzymatic approaches and α-L-fucosidases. This work aimed to characterise α-L-fucosidases identified in an alpaca faeces metagenome. Based on bioinformatic analyses, they were confirmed as members of the GH29A subfamily. The recombinant α-L-fucosidases were expressed in Escherichia coli and showed hydrolytic activity towards p-nitrophenyl-α-L-fucopyranoside and 2'-fucosyllactose. Furthermore, the enzymes' biochemical properties and kinetic characteristics were also determined. All four α-L-fucosidases could catalyse transfucosylation using a broad diversity of fucosyl acceptor substrates, including lactose, maltotriose, L-serine, and L-threonine. The results contribute insights into the potential use of α-L-fucosidases for synthesising fucosylated amino acids.

Recent advances in chemical synthesis of O-linked glycopeptides and glycoproteins: An advanced synthetic tool for exploring the biological realm

Glycoproteins play crucial roles in various biological processes. To investigate the relationship between glycan structure and function, researchers have employed various chemical methods to precisely synthesize homogeneous O-glycoproteins. This review summarizes the recent progress of their synthetic strategies, highlighting the significant advancements in this area.

Recent Advances in Chemical Synthesis of Structural Domains of Lipopolysaccharides from the Commensal Gut-Associated Microbiota

Lipopolysaccharides from the commensal gut-associated microbiota are interesting biomolecules for the treatment of various inflammatory diseases. Different from pathogenic lipopolysaccharides, commensal lipopolysaccharides have distinct chemical structures and mediate beneficial homeostasis with the immune system of the host. However, the accessibility issues of homogenous and pure commensal lipopolysaccharides hampered the in-depth studies of their functions. In this concept article, we highlight the recent synthesis of lipopolysaccharides from gut-associated lymphoid-tissue-resident Alcaligenes faecalis and Bacteroides vulgatus, which hopes to inspire the more efforts devoting to these fantastic biomolecules.

NMR chemical shift prediction and structural elucidation of linker-containing oligo- and polysaccharides using the computer program CASPER

Carbohydrate structures containing alkyl groups as aglycones are useful for investigating enzyme activity and glycan-protein interactions. Moreover, linker-containing oligosaccharides with a spacer group are commonly used to print glycan microarrays or to prepare protein-conjugates as vaccine candidates. The structural accuracy of these synthesized glycans are essential for interpretation of results from biological experiments in which the compounds have been used and NMR spectroscopy can unravel and confirm their structures. An approach for efficient 1H and 13C NMR chemical shift assignments employed a parallel NOAH-10 measurement followed by NMR spin-simulation to refine the 1H NMR chemical shifts, as exemplified for a disaccharide with an azidoethyl group as an aglycone, the NMR chemical shifts of which have been used to enhance the quality of CASPER (http://www.casper.organ.su.se/casper/). The CASPER program has been further developed to aid characterization of linker-containing oligo- and polysaccharides, either by chemical shift prediction for comparison to experimental NMR data or as structural investigation of synthesized glycans based on acquired unassigned NMR data. The ability of CASPER to elucidate structures of linker-containing oligosaccharides is demonstrated and comparisons to assigned or unassigned NMR data show the utility of CASPER in supporting a proposed oligosaccharide structure. Prediction of NMR chemical shifts of an oligosaccharide, corresponding to the repeating unit of an O-antigen polysaccharide, having a linker as an aglycone and a non-natural substituent derivative thereof are presented to exemplify the diversity of structures handled. Furthermore, NMR chemical shift predictions of synthesized polysaccharides, corresponding to bacterial polysaccharides, containing a linker are described showing that in addition to oligosaccharide structures also polysaccharide structures having an aglycone spacer group can be analyzed by CASPER.

Modular and Stereoselective One-Pot Total Synthesis of Icosasaccharide Motif from Cordyceps sinensis EPS-1A Glycan

The first stereoselective one-pot synthesis of the icosasaccharide motif of EPS-1A glycan from Cordyceps sinensis has been achieved. The synthetic approach highlights the following features: (1) merging reagent modulation and remote anchimeric assistance α-glycosylation strategy for the highly stereoselective formation of five and ten continuous 1,2-cis glucosidic bonds; (2) the strategic employment of glycosyl N-phenyltrifluoroacetimidates and glycosyl o-(1-phenylvinyl)benzoates as the matched pair for efficient orthogonal one-pot synthesis; and (3) [11 + 8 + 1] orthogonal one-pot glycosylation for the efficient assembly of the target icosasaccharide.

One-Pot Assembly of the Highly Branched Tetradecasaccharide from Ganoderma lucidum Glycan GLSWA-1 with Immune-Enhancing Activities

The highly branched tetradecasaccharide repeating unit and shorter sequences of GLSWA-1 with immune-enhancing activities from Ganoderma lucidum have been prepared via a one-pot glycan assembly strategy. The synthetic route features (1) orthogonal one-pot glycosylation on the basis of PVB glycosylation to streamline glycan synthesis avoiding such issues as aglycone transfer, (2) one-pot assembly of oligosaccharides with up to four different glycosyl linkages, and (3) modular and convergent [4+5+5] one-pot assembly of the highly branched tetradecasaccharide.

Dynamic Kinetic Stereoselective Glycosylation via RhII and Chiral Phosphoric Acid-Cocatalyzed Carbenoid Insertion to the Anomeric OH Bond for the Synthesis of Glycoconjugates

Chemical synthesis of glycoconjugates is essential for studying the biological functions of carbohydrates. We herein report an efficient approach for the stereoselective synthesis of challenging α-linked glycoconjugates via a RhII /chiral phosphoric acid (CPA)-cocatalyzed dynamic kinetic anomeric O-alkylation of sugar-derived lactols via carbenoid insertion to the anomeric OH bond. Notably, we observed excellent anomeric selectivity, excellent diastereoselectivity, broad substrate scope, and high efficiency for this glycosylation reaction by exploring various parameters of the cocatalytic system. DFT calculations suggested that the anomeric selectivity was mainly determined by steric interactions between the C2-carbon of the carbohydrate and the phenyl group of the metal carbenoid, while π/π interactions with the C2-OBn substituent on the carbohydrate substrate play a significant role for diastereoselectivity at the newly generated stereogenic center.

Molecular implications of glycosaminoglycans in diabetes pharmacotherapy

Diabetes mellitus causes a wide range of metabolic derangements with multiple organ damage. The microvascular and macrovascular complications of diabetes result partly from the damage to the glycosaminoglycans (GAG) in the basement membrane. GAGs are negatively charged polysaccharides with repeating disaccharide units. They play a significant role in cellular proliferation and signal transduction. Destruction of extracellular matrix results in diseases in various organs including myocardial fibrosis, retinal damage and nephropathy. To substitute the natural GAGs pharmacotherapeutically, they have been synthesized by using basic disaccharide units. Among the four classes of GAGs, heparin is the most widely studied. Recent studies have revealed multiple significant GAG-protein interactions suggesting their use for the management of diabetic complications. Moreover, they can act as biomarkers for assessing the disease progression. A number of GAG-based therapeutic agents are being evaluated for managing diabetic complications. The current review provides an outline of the role of GAGs in diabetes while covering their interaction with different molecular players that can serve as targets for the diagnosis, management and prevention of diabetes and its complications. The medicinal chemistry and clinical pharmacotherapeutics aspects have are covered to aid in the establishment of GAG-based therapies as a possible avenue for diabetes.

A selective and atom-economic rearrangement of uridine by cascade biocatalysis for production of pseudouridine

As a crucial factor of their therapeutic efficacy, the currently marketed mRNA vaccines feature uniform substitution of uridine (U) by the corresponding C-nucleoside, pseudouridine (Ψ), in 1-N-methylated form. Synthetic supply of the mRNA building block (1-N-Me-Ψ-5'-triphosphate) involves expedient access to Ψ as the principal challenge. Here, we show selective and atom-economic 1N-5C rearrangement of β-D-ribosyl on uracil to obtain Ψ from unprotected U in quantitative yield. One-pot cascade transformation of U in four enzyme-catalyzed steps, via D-ribose (Rib)-1-phosphate, Rib-5-phosphate (Rib5P) and Ψ-5'-phosphate (ΨMP), gives Ψ. Coordinated function of the coupled enzymes in the overall rearrangement necessitates specific release of phosphate from the ΨMP, but not from the intermediary ribose phosphates. Discovery of Yjjg as ΨMP-specific phosphatase enables internally controlled regeneration of phosphate as catalytic reagent. With driving force provided from the net N-C rearrangement, the optimized U reaction yields a supersaturated product solution (∼250 g/L) from which the pure Ψ crystallizes (90% recovery). Scale up to 25 g isolated product at enzyme turnovers of ∼10⁵mol/mol demonstrates a robust process technology, promising for Ψ production. Our study identifies a multistep rearrangement reaction, realized by cascade biocatalysis, for C-nucleoside synthesis in high efficiency.

β-1,2-Oligomannan phosphorylase-mediated synthesis of potential oligosaccharide vaccine candidates

β-(1,2)-Mannan antigens incorporated into vaccines candidates for immunization studies, showed that antibodies raised against β-(1,2)-mannotriose antigens can protect against disseminated candidiasis. Until recently, β-(1,2)- mannans could only be obtained by isolation from microbial cultures, or by lengthy synthetic strategies involving protecting group manipulation. The discovery of two β-(1,2)-mannoside phosphorylases, Teth514_1788 and Teth514_1789, allowed efficient access to these compounds. In this work, Teth514_1788 was utilised to generate β-(1,2)-mannan antigens, tri- and tetra-saccharides, decorated with a conjugation tether at the reducing end, suitable to be incorporated on a carrier en-route to novel vaccine candidates, illustrated here by conjugation of the trisaccharide to BSA.

Chemical synthesis of oligosaccharides and their application in new drug research

Oligosaccharides are the ubiquitous molecules of life. In order to translate human bioglycosylation into clinical applications, homogeneous samples of oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates can be obtained by chemical, enzymatic or other biological methods for systematic studies. However, the structural complexity and diversity of glycans and their conjugates present a major challenge for the synthesis of such molecules. This review summarizes the chemical synthesis methods of oligosaccharides, the application of oligosaccharides in the field of medicinal chemistry according to their related biological activities, and shows the great prospect of oligosaccharides in the field of pharmaceutical chemistry.

Different Biophysical Properties of Cell Surface α2,3- and α2,6-Sialoglycans Revealed by Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Studies

Sialoglycans on HeLa cells were labeled with a nitroxide spin radical through enzymatic glycoengineering (EGE)-mediated installation of azide-modified sialic acid (Neu5Ac9N₃) and then click reaction-based attachment of a nitroxide spin radical. α2,6-Sialyltransferase (ST) Pd2,6ST and α2,3-ST CSTII were used for EGE to install α2,6- and α2,3-linked Neu5Ac9N₃, respectively. The spin-labeled cells were analyzed by X-band continuous wave (CW) electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy to gain insights into the dynamics and organizations of cell surface α2,6- and α2,3-sialoglycans. Simulations of the EPR spectra revealed average fast- and intermediate-motion components for the spin radicals in both sialoglycans. However, α2,6- and α2,3-sialoglycans in HeLa cells possess different distributions of the two components, e.g., a higher average population of the intermediate-motion component for α2,6-sialoglycans (78%) than that for α2,3-sialoglycans (53%). Thus, the average mobility of spin radicals in α2,3-sialoglycans was higher than that in α2,6-sialoglycans. Given the fact that a spin-labeled sialic acid residue attached to the 6-O-position of galactose/N-acetyl-galactosamine would experience less steric hindrance and show more flexibility than that attached to the 3-O-position, these results may reflect the differences in local crowding/packing that restrict the spin-label and sialic acid motion for α2,6-linked sialoglycans. The studies further suggest that Pd2,6ST and CSTII may have different preferences for glycan substrates in the complex environment of the extracellular matrix. The discoveries of this work are biologically important as they are useful for interpreting the different functions of α2,6- and α2,3-sialoglycans and indicate the possibility of using Pd2,6ST and CSTII to target different glycoconjugates on cells.

TsOH-catalyzed acyl migration reaction of the Bz-group: innovative assembly of various building blocks for the synthesis of saccharides

We developed an efficient method to achieve the regioselective acyl migration of benzoyl ester. In all the cases, the reactions required only the commercially available organic acid catalyst TsOH·H₂O. This method enables the benzoyl group to migrate from secondary groups to primary hydroxyl groups, or from equatorial secondary hydroxyl groups to axial hydroxyl groups. The 1,2 or 1,3 acyl migration would potentially occur via five- and six-membered cyclic ortho acid intermediates. A wide range of orthogonally protected monosaccharides, which are useful intermediates for the synthesis of natural oligosaccharides, were synthesized. Finally, to demonstrate the utility of the method, a tetrasaccharide portion from a mycobacterial cell wall polysaccharide was assembled.

Boron-mediated aglycon delivery (BMAD) for the stereoselective synthesis of 1,2-cis glycosides

1,2-cis Glycosides are frequently found in biologically active natural products, pharmaceutical compounds, and highly functional materials. Therefore, elucidating the role of mechanism of their biological activities will help clarify the structure-activity relationships of these diverse compounds and create new lead compounds for pharmaceuticals by modifying their structures. However, unlike 1,2-trans glycosides, the stereoselective synthesis of 1,2-cis glycosides remains difficult due to the nonavailability of neighboring group participation from the 2-O-acyl functionalities of the glycosyl donors. In this context, we recently developed organoboron-catalyzed 1,2-cis-stereoselecitve glycosylations, called boron-mediated aglycon delivery (BMAD) methods. In this review article, we introduce the BMAD methods and several examples of their application to the synthesis of biologically active glycosides.

Evaluation of double expression system for co-expression and co-immobilization of flavonoid glucosylation cascade

Abstract

Glucosylation cascade consisting of Leloir glycosyltransferase and sucrose synthase with in situ regeneration system of expensive and low available nucleotide sugars is a game-changing strategy for enzyme-based production of glycoconjugates of relevant natural products. We designed a stepwise approach including co-expression and one-step purification and co-immobilization on glass-based EziG resins of sucrose synthase from Glycine max (GmSuSy) with promiscuous glucosyltransferase YjiC from Bacillus licheniformis to produce efficient, robust, and versatile biocatalyst suited for preparative scale flavonoid glucosylation. The undertaken investigations identified optimal reaction conditions (30 °C, pH 7.5, and 10 mM Mg²⁺) and the best-suited carrier (EziG Opal). The prepared catalyst exhibited excellent reusability, retaining up to 96% of initial activity after 12 cycles of reactions. The semi-preparative glucosylation of poorly soluble isoflavone Biochanin A resulted in the production of 73 mg Sissotrin (Biochanin A 7-O-glucoside). Additionally, the evaluation of the designed double-controlled, monocistronic expression system with two independently induced promoters (rhaBAD and trc) brought beneficial information for dual-expression plasmid design.

Key points

• Simultaneous and titratable expression from two independent promoters is possible, although full control over the expression is limited.

• Designed catalyst managed to glucosylate poorly soluble isoflavone.

• The STY of Sissotrin using the designed catalyst reached 0.26 g/L∙h∙g of the resin.

Graphical Abstract

Supplementary information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00253-022-12259-5.

VaporSPOT: Parallel Synthesis of Oligosaccharides on Membranes

Automated chemical synthesis has revolutionized synthetic access to biopolymers in terms of simplicity and speed. While automated oligosaccharide synthesis has become faster and more versatile, the parallel synthesis of oligosaccharides is not yet possible. Here, a chemical vapor glycosylation strategy (VaporSPOT) is described that enables the simultaneous synthesis of oligosaccharides on a cellulose membrane solid support. Different linkers allow for flexible and straightforward cleavage, purification, and characterization of the target oligosaccharides. This method is the basis for the development of parallel automated glycan synthesis platforms.

An analytical study on the identification of N-linked glycosylation sites using machine learning model

N-linked is the most common type of glycosylation which plays a significant role in identifying various diseases such as type I diabetes and cancer and helps in drug development. Most of the proteins cannot perform their biological and psychological functionalities without undergoing such modification. Therefore, it is essential to identify such sites by computational techniques because of experimental limitations. This study aims to analyze and synthesize the progress to discover N-linked places using machine learning methods. It also explores the performance of currently available tools to predict such sites. Almost seventy research articles published in recognized journals of the N-linked glycosylation field have shortlisted after the rigorous filtering process. The findings of the studies have been reported based on multiple aspects: publication channel, feature set construction method, training algorithm, and performance evaluation. Moreover, a literature survey has developed a taxonomy of N-linked sequence identification. Our study focuses on the performance evaluation criteria, and the importance of N-linked glycosylation motivates us to discover resources that use computational methods instead of the experimental method due to its limitations.

The total synthesis of rhynchosporosides via orthogonal one-pot glycosylation and stereoselective α-glycosylation strategies

The efficient and collective synthesis of rhynchosporosides causing scald diseases has been achieved, which features orthogonal one-pot glycosylation on the basis of PTFAI glycosylation, Yu glycosylation, and PVB glycosylation and merging reagent modulation and remote anchimeric assistance (RMRAA) α-glucosylation strategies. The issues inherent to the thioglycoside-based orthogonal one-pot glycosylation strategy, such as aglycone transfer, have been precluded by this orthogonal one-pot glycosylation strategy, which can streamline glycan chemical synthesis.

Total synthesis of Lentinus giganteus glycans with antitumor activities via stereoselective α-glycosylation and orthogonal one-pot glycosylation strategies

The accessibility to long, branched and complex glycans containing many 1,2-cis glycosidic linkages with precise structures remains a challenging task in chemical synthesis. Reported here is an efficient, stereoselective and orthogonal one-pot synthesis of a tetradecasaccharide and shorter sequences from Lentinus giganteus polysaccharides with antitumor activities. The synthetic strategy consists of: (1) newly developed merging reagent modulation and remote anchimeric assistance (RMRAA) α-(1→6)-galactosylation in a highly stereoselective manner, (2) DMF-modulated stereoselective α-(1→3)-glucosylation, (3) RMRAA stereoselective α-(1→6)-glucosylation, (4) several orthogonal one-pot glycosylations on the basis of N-phenyltrifluoroacetimidate (PTFAI) glycosylation, Yu glycosylation and ortho-(1-phenylvinyl)benzoate (PVB) glycosylation to streamline oligosaccharide synthesis, and (5) convergent [7 + 7] glycosylation for the final assembly of the target tetradecasaccharide. In particular, this new RMRAA α-galactosylation method has mild reaction conditions, broad substrate scopes and significantly shortened step counts for the heptasaccharide synthesis in comparison with 4,6-di-tert-butylsilyene (DTBS) directed α-galactosylation. Furthermore, DFT calculations shed light on the origins of remote anchimeric assistance effects (3,4-OBz > 3,4-OAc > 4-OBz > 3-OBz) of acyl groups.

Site-selective, stereocontrolled glycosylation of minimally protected sugars

The identification of general and efficient methods for the construction of oligosaccharides stands as one of the great challenges for the field of synthetic chemistry^1,2. Selective glycosylation of unprotected sugars and other polyhydroxylated nucleophiles is a particularly significant goal, requiring not only control over the stereochemistry of the forming bond but also differentiation between similarly reactive nucleophilic sites in stereochemically complex contexts^3,4. Chemists have generally relied on multi-step protecting-group strategies to achieve site control in glycosylations, but practical inefficiencies arise directly from the application of such approaches^5-7. We describe here a new strategy for small-molecule-catalyst-controlled, highly stereo- and site-selective glycosylations of unprotected or minimally protected mono- and disaccharides using precisely designed bis-thiourea small-molecule catalysts. Stereo- and site-selective galactosylations and mannosylations of a wide assortment of polyfunctional nucleophiles is thereby achieved. Kinetic and computational studies provide evidence that site selectivity arises from stabilizing C-H/π interactions between the catalyst and the nucleophile, analogous to those documented in sugar-binding proteins. This work demonstrates that highly selective glycosylation reactions can be achieved through control of stabilizing noncovalent interactions, a potentially general strategy for selective functionalization of carbohydrates.

The Synthesis and Glycoside Formation of Polyfluorinated Carbohydrates

Fluorinated carbohydrates have found many applications in the glycosciences. Typically, these contain fluorination at a single position. There are not many applications involving polyfluorinated carbohydrates, here defined as monosaccharides in which more than one carbon has at least one fluorine substituent directly attached to it, with the notable exception of their use as mechanism-based inhibitors. The increasing attention to carbohydrate physical properties, especially around lipophilicity, has resulted in a surge of interest for this class of compounds. This review covers the considerable body of work toward the synthesis of polyfluorinated hexoses, pentoses, ketosugars, and aminosugars including sialic acids and nucleosides. An overview of the current state of the art of their glycosidation is also provided.

One-Pot Regioselective Diacylation of Pyranoside 1,2-cis Diols

A one-pot strategy for functionalizing pyranoside 1,2-cis-diols with two different ester protecting groups is reported. The approach employs regioselective acylation via orthoester hydrolysis promoted by a carboxylic acid, e.g., levulinic acid, acetic acid, benzoic acid, or chloroacetic acid. Upon removal of water and introduction of a coupling agent, the carboxylic acid is esterified to the hydroxyl group liberated during hydrolysis. Although applied to 1,2-cis-diols on pyranoside scaffolds, the method should be applicable to such motifs on any six-membered ring.

Investigation of acyl transfer auxiliary-assisted glycoconjugation for glycoprotein semi-synthesis

We explore reactions between sugar-linked acyl transfer auxiliaries and peptide or protein thioesters, and find that various glycoprotein analogues are accessible.