Glycomics hits the big time

Abstract

Cells run on carbohydrates. Glycans, sequences of carbohydrates conjugated to proteins and lipids, are arguably the most abundant and structurally diverse class of molecules in nature. Recent advances in glycomics reveal the scope and scale of their functional roles and their impact on human disease.

Figure 1. Glycans permeate cellular biology

Complex glycans at the cell surface are targets of microbes and viruses, regulate cell adhesion and development, influence metastasis of cancer cells, and regulate myriad receptor:ligand interactions. Glycans within the secretory pathway regulate protein quality control, turnover, and trafficking of molecules to organelles. Nucleocytoplasmic O-linked N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) has extensive crosstalk with phosphorylation to regulate signaling, cytoskeletal functions and gene expression in response to nutrients and stress.

Figure 2. Glycomic complexity reflects cellular complexity

Given that glycan structures are regulated by metabolism and glyco-enzyme expression, and glycans modify both proteins and lipids, functional glycomics also requires the tools of genomics, proteomics, lipidomics and metabolomics (modified after (Packer et al., 2008).