Glycosidases in carbohydrate synthesis: when organic chemistry falls short.

Thanks to the stability, good availability, stereoselectivity and broad substrate specificity, oligosaccharide synthesis catalyzed by glycosidases represents an elegant way to complex carbohydrate structures. Two approaches to glycosidase catalysis are presented: (i) the use of structurally modified substrates that carry various functional moieties in the molecule, and (ii) the design of mutant glycosidases void of hydrolytic activity. Products of glycosidase-catalyzed synthesis are applicable in a range of areas such as immunology, therapy of Alzheimer's or Parkinson's diseases and the synthesis of neoglycoproteins.