Solvent interactions determine carbohydrate conformation.

ABSTRACT: The relationship between the three-dimensional structures of oligosaccharides and polysaccharides and their biological properties has been the focus of many recent studies. The overall conformation of an oligosaccharide depends primarily on the orientation of the torsion angles (phi, psi, and omega) between glycosyl residues. Numerous experimental studies have shown that in glucopyranosides the omega-torsion angle (O(6)-C(6)-C(5)-O(5)) displays a preference for gauche orientations, in disagreement with predictions based on gas-phase quantum mechanics calculations. In contrast, the omega-angle in galactopyranosides displays a high proportion of the anti-orientation. For oligosaccharides containing glycosidic linkages at the 6-position (1-->6 linked), variations in rotamer population have a

SUBMITTER: Kirschner KN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC58501 | biostudies-literature | 2001 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature