Main description:

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.

Contents:

Chapter Titles

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