Nature and origin of carbohydrate mimicry

一项旨在开发碳水化合物模仿概念的研究计划被提出。这一概念之所以重要，是因为需要更具约束力的药物或更具选择性的候选疫苗。我们已经选择了几个生物上重要的目标来开发候选药物或疫苗。这些抗体包括一种对开发抗病毒疫苗至关重要的抗体、一种对结核分枝杆菌生存所必需的关键酶(UDP-半乳糖变位酶)(人类中没有这种酶)、一种对流感病毒传播至关重要的酶(神经氨酸酶)，以及一种对开发B组链球菌疫苗至关重要的抗体，B组链球菌是新生儿脑膜炎的病原体。

A program of research designed to exploit the concept of carbohydrate mimicry is proposed. The concept is of importance because of the need for tighter-binding drugs or more selective vaccine candidates. We have chosen several biologically important targets for the development of drug or vaccine candidates. These include an antibody of importance for the development of a vaccine against dysentry, a critical enzyme (UDP-galactopyranose mutase) necessary for survival of M. tuberculosis (and absent in humans), an enzyme (neuraminidase) critical for the propagation of influenza virus, and an antibody of importance for the development of a vaccine against Group B Streptococcus, the causative agent of meningitis in newborns.