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Glyspy: A Software Suite For Assigning Glycan Topologies From Sequential Mass Spectral Data, Anthony Lapadula

Doctoral Dissertations

GlySpy is a suite of algorithms used to determine the structure of glycans. Glycans, which are orderly aggregations of monosaccharides such as glucose, mannose, and fucose, are often attached to proteins and lipids, and provide a wide range of biological functions. Previous biomolecule-sequencing algorithms have operated on linear polymers such as proteins or DNA but, because glycans form complicated branching structures, new approaches are required. GlySpy uses data derived from sequential mass spectrometry (MSn), in which a precursor molecule is fragmented to form products, each of which may then be fragmented further, gradually disassembling the glycan. GlySpy resolves the structures …

Development And Application Of Methods For Analysis Of Fungal Glycosphingolipid Structure And Functional Interactions, Emma Adhiambo Arigi

Doctoral Dissertations

Fungal lectins from the mushrooms Polyporus squamosus and Coprinus cinereus have an affinity for beta-galactosides, with extended binding sites for the non-reducing terminal trisaccharide sequence NeuAcalpha2→6Galbeta1→4Glc/GlcNAc, and substituted beta-galactosides resembling mammalian blood group determinants, respectively. In considering the possibility that glycosylinositol phosphorylceramides (GIPCs) could be endogenous ligands of such fungal lectins, structural characterization of glycosphingolipids (GSLs) from the fruiting bodies of these mushrooms was performed. The extraction, isolation and purification of the lipids, and their subsequent characterization by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), mass spectrometry (MS) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was performed. One monohexosylceramide (CMH) and three major GIPCs were …

Fungal Glycosphingolipids: Characterization Of Structures And Interactions With Plant Defensins, Jis Joe

Master's Theses and Capstones

Glycosphingolipids (GSLs) play important roles in many fundamental biological processes like activation of signal transduction pathways, immune responses, and cell-cell interactions. Recent reports imply that fungal GSLs are important targets for the antifungal action of plant defensins. In order to study intermolecular interactions of GSLs, it is crucial to know their structures in detail. This thesis consists of two projects in which fungal GSLs of biological and biomedical significance are studied. In the first project, we have completed the structural characterization of acidic GSLs from S. cerevisiae using NMR spectroscopy and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). The second project of …

Studies Of The Structures, Biosynthesis And Function Of Fungal Glycosphingolipids, Elizabeth A. Owuor

Master's Theses and Capstones

Glycosphingolipids (GSLs) are ubiquitously distributed among all eukaryotes. In fungi, GSLs have also been implicated in a variety of cellular processes, including growth, cell signaling, differentiation and morphogenesis. Detailed knowledge of fungal GSL structure and biosynthesis is therefore expected to yield valuable insights into both their functions within the organism and their interactions with other organisms, such as with the immune system, of an infected host as well as to provide targets for diagnostic and therapeutic agents.

Research described in this thesis focused on fungal GSL structure and biosynthesis. Two projects are described. The first was aimed at elucidating the …