The presence of glycan modifications at the cell surface and other locales positions them as key regulators of cell recognition and function. However, due to the complexity of glycosylation, the annotation of which proteins bear glycan modifications, which glycan patterns are present, and which proteins are capable of binding glycans is incomplete. Inspired by activity-based protein profiling to enrich for proteins in cells based on select characteristics, these endeavors have been greatly advanced by the development of appropriate glycan-binding and glycan-based probes. Here, we provide context for these three problems and describe how the capability of molecules to interact with glycans has enabled the assignment of proteins with specific glycan modifications or of proteins that bind glycans. Furthermore, we discuss how the integration of these probes with high resolution mass spectrometry-based technologies has greatly advanced glycoscience.
Keyphrases
- cell surface
- mass spectrometry
- induced apoptosis
- liquid chromatography
- high resolution mass spectrometry
- single cell
- binding protein
- cell cycle arrest
- small molecule
- mental health
- fluorescence imaging
- high resolution
- stem cells
- cell proliferation
- bone marrow
- endoplasmic reticulum stress
- amino acid
- transcription factor
- label free
- simultaneous determination