Developing RAMAN-based methodology to investigate cell glycosylation signatures

类风湿关节炎是一种影响全球1%人口的慢性炎症性疾病，但我们仍然缺乏预测疾病表型或对药物反应的方法。我们实验室最近获得的结果表明，细胞糖基化是克服这一科学僵局的潜在目标。所有的活细胞都被一层独特的聚糖（或糖）所覆盖。我们知道，多糖表达失调与慢性炎症的发生之间存在着密切的联系，但这一过程的细节仍不清楚，主要是由于缺乏合适的分析方法。我们计划探索采用拉曼光谱作为一种创新的无标签方法来探索糖萼。该工具将为糖组学领域带来新的亮点，使新的科学发现不仅为研究细胞糖基化的病理生理变化提供更有效的方法，而且还可以了解细胞生物学的新方面，以连接健康和疾病中细胞的炎症反应，结构糖生物学和机械特性。此外，由于与拉曼仪器的行业领导者Horiba的合作，我们将解决该方法转化为临床的潜力，设计一种拉曼驱动的炎症状态诊断设备。

Rheumatoid Arthritis is a chronic inflammatory condition affecting 1% of the global population, but we still lack methods to predict disease phenotype or responses to drugs. Recent results obtained in our lab identify cell glycosylation as a potential target to overcome this scientific impasse. All living cells are covered by a distinct layer of glycans [or sugars]. We know that a tight connection exists between the dysregulation of glycan expression and the onset of chronic inflammation, but the details of this process are still unclear, mostly due to the lack of suitable analytical methods. We plan to explore the adoption of Raman spectroscopy as an innovative label-free approach to explore the glycocalyx. This tool will shine a new light on the field of glycomics, enabling new scientific discoveries not only to provide more effective ways to investigate pathophysiological changes in cell glycosylation, but also to understand new aspects of cell biology to bridge inflammatory responses, structural glycobiology and mechanical properties of cells both in health and disease. Moreover, thanks to the collaboration with an industrial leader in Raman instrumentation, Horiba, we will address the potential of the approach to translate towards the clinic, designing a Raman-powered diagnostic device for inflammatory states.