Multivalent Carbohydrate-based Inhibitors of Lectins
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| Year of publication | 2016 |
| Type | Conference abstract |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | Lectins are sugar-binding proteins of non-immune origin occurring in all organisms and executing various functions. Microbial lectins can recognize carbohydrates on host cells (glycoproteins or glycolipids) and mediate adhesion to host cells or mucosal surfaces. Adhesion is considered to be an important step in the infection development as it protects a pathogen from natural cleansing mechanisms of the host. Consequently, lectins could be significant virulence factors. Therefore, blocking of adhesion could prevent disease development or facilitate treatment. Our most promising results were obtained for L-fucose-specific lectins AFL from A. fumigatus (the most prominent fungal human pathogen causing nosocomial infections) and RSL from R. solanacearum (a dangerous pathogen of important agricultural plants). The inhibition potencies of carbohydrate-based inhibitors with a calixarene core were significantly higher than that of a simple fucose monosaccharide. |
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