Chemoenzymatic approaches to explore polysaccharide structure-property relationships

多糖是碳水化合物结构，含有多个单元的常见单糖前体，组装成直链和支链，其中它们构成约80%的生物质。它们提供基本的结构作用，聚集成具有不同最终物理性质的定义明确的系统。目前，全球需要开发和供应生物相容性，廉价和可再生的材料，以应用于众多工业部门。多糖满足了这些物质的要求，但这是由需要首先充分了解其更高的结构架构支撑其物理化学，生物材料的性质。与核酸和蛋白质的情况相反，多糖的结构不是模板编码的，它们不受基因组的直接控制。因此，我们目前没有“代码”或“工具包”来理解和操纵多糖材料。规避这一点的策略是提供对限定寡糖的受控获取。然后，这些材料可以进行深入的结构和功能分析，以了解控制和驱动多糖中高阶组装的规则。本项目将涉及使用化学和酶方法设计和组装寡糖片段。您将参与构思和合成定义的寡糖序列，这些序列将与工业合作伙伴联合利华一起用于进行理化和功能筛选。

Polysaccharides are carbohydrate architectures containing multiple units of common monosaccharide precursors that are assembled into linear and branched chains where they constitute around 80% of biomass. They provide essential structural roles, aggregating into well-defined systems with different, ultimate physical properties. There is a current global necessity to develop and supply biocompatible, cheap and renewable materials for application across a multitude of industrial sectors. Polysaccharides satisfy much of these material requirements, but this is predicated by a need to first fully understand their higher structural architecture underpinning to their physicochemical, biomaterial properties.In contrast to the situation with nucleic acids and proteins, polysaccharide architectures are not template-encoded and they are not under direct genomic control. Hence, we currently have no 'code' or 'tool-kit' with which to understand and manipulate polysaccharide materials. A strategy to circumvent this is to provide a controlled access to defined oligosaccharides. These materials can then be subjected to in depth structural and functional analysis, to learn the rules that control and drive higher order assemblies in polysaccharides. This project will involve the design and assembly of oligosaccharide fragments using chemical and enzymatic methods. You will be involved in conceiving and synthesising defined oligosaccharide sequences which will be utilised in conjunction with the industrial partner, Unilever, to perform physicochemical and functionality screening.