Carbohydrate Synthesis Method

About

Oligosaccharides are increasingly useful in the field of food. Not only do they function as sweeteners, but as prebiotics they are important for cultivating healthy gut flora, and the natural occurrence of oligosaccharides in breastmilk has sparked interest among infant formula manufacturers who want to more closely replicate biology. The problem is that carbohydrate production remains a non-trivial process. We present a fast and simple yet robust method for constructing oligosaccharides, which could form the basis for automated carbohydrate synthesis. Technology Description This novel one-pot glycosylation system uses a designer thioglycoside and global deprotection to streamline the oligosaccharide assembly process. Traditionally, carbohydrate chain elongation involves oxophilic or thiophilic activators, which are incompatible with acid-sensitive protecting groups. Instead, our system uses a carbophilic activator, which facilitates glycosidic linkage formation while also supporting protecting groups that can be easily removed all at once from the completed carbohydrate. Not only is this system faster and more user-friendly than existing methods, but with a yield greater than 93 percent for most oligosaccharides, it’s also more efficient. Stage of Development Tested in the laboratory IP Status US patent 9,399,655