Glycobiology of the Nervous System

This new edition provides comprehensive coverage of the variety and complexity of the roles that glycoconjugates play in the cells of the nervous system. Basic fundamental principles as well as the latest developments in neural glycobiology are discussed.  Topics covered range from the structure and metabolism of the saccharide chains and current approaches used in their study, to changes glycoconjugates undergo during development and aging of the nervous system and the roles they have in neurological disease. New topics include a detailed discussion of cells found within the nervous system, an extensive listing of congenital disorders of glycosylation of both proteins and lipids, the roles of glycans in neuronal axon growth/guidance and voltage-gated channels, the role of intra-lysosomal luminal vesicles in lysosomal storage disorders, and, in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of carbohydrates in infection by SARS-CoV-2. The breadth and depth of topics covered make this an essential reference for those new to the field as well as for more experienced investigators.

Chapter Titles

1. Introduction to the complexity of cell surface and tissue matrix glycoconjugates 
2. Cells of the central nervous system:  An overview of their structure and function
3. Synthesis, processing, and function of N-glycans in N-glycoproteins
4. Synthesis of O-linked glycoconjugates in the nervous system
5. Chemistry and function of glycosaminoglycans in the nervous system
6. Structural analysis of oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates using NMR
7. Glycans and carbohydrate-binding/transforming proteins in axon physiology
8. Neurological consequences of congenital disorders of glycosylation
9. Brain O-GlcNAcylation: from molecular mechanisms to clinical phenotype
10. Ganglioside microdomains on cellular and intracellular and membranes regulate neuronal cell fate determination
11. Gangliosides and cell surface ganglioside glycohydrolases in the nervous system
12. Neuronal ganglioside and GSL metabolism in health and disease Cascades of secondary metabolic errors can generate complex pathologies (in LSDs)
13. Gangliosides in neurodegenerative diseases
14. Functional impairment of the nervous system with glycolipid deficiencies
15. Carbohydrates: binding sites and potential drug targets for neural-affecting pathogens
16. Antibodies to glycolipids in Guillain-Barré syndrome, Miller Fisher syndrome and related autoimmune neurological diseases