Synthesis of polyanionic glycopolymers for the facile assembly of glycosyl arrays

Polyanionic glycopolymers were synthesized aiming at establishing a simple process for assembling glycosyl arrays. The synthetic glycopolymers carry the key carbohydrate epitopes of α-d-galactobioside (Gb2), β-lactoside, and α-d-mannopyranoside, each of which serves as a ligand of bacterial toxins and adhesion proteins. The Gb2 epitope, prepared from penta-O-acetyl-d-galactopyranose, was coupled with poly(ethylene-alt-maleic anhydride) in a polymer reaction to afford a Gb2-embedded glycopolymer having also carboxylate (COO−) polyanions at the side chain. The polyanionic glycopolymer was then applied to a preparation of sugar-coated gold electrodes, which involves an alternating layer-by-layer adsorption based on electrostatic interactions. The presence of the Gb2-coat on the surface was evidenced by Fourier transform infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy. The Gb2-coated glyco-chip was stable in 10 mM HEPES buffer containing 150 mM NaCl aq. Other glycopolymers carrying the β-lactoside and α-d-mannopyranoside epitopes were applied to the same assembling process. The derived glycosyl arrays will be useful for detecting Shiga toxins, other pathogenic toxins and viruses when applied as glyco-chips for surface plasmon resonance or quartz crystal microbalance technique.