Sialidase and Sialyltransferase Inhibitors: Targeting Pathogenicity and Disease.

ABSTRACT: Sialidases (SAs) and sialyltransferases (STs), the enzymes responsible for removing and adding sialic acid to other glycans, play essential roles in viruses, bacteria, parasites, and humans. Sialic acid is often the terminal sugar on glycans protruding from the cell surface in humans and is an important component for recognition and cell function. Pathogens have evolved to exploit this and use sialic acid to either "cloak" themselves, ensuring they remain undetected, or as a mechanism to enable release of virus progeny. The development of inhibitors against SAs and STs therefore provides the opportunity to target a range of diseases. Inhibitors targeting viral, bacterial, or parasitic enzymes can directly target their pathogenicity in humans. Excellent examples of this can be found with th

SUBMITTER: Bowles WHD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8358268 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature