INS13-1068
Precision glycopolymers to develop dynamic glycocalyx models and study infections
Topic
S13. Korea-Germany Polymer Symposium 2026: “Pioneering the Future of Polymeric Materials and Bridging Innovation in Sustainable Technologies”
When and Where
Sep 29, 2026
17:30 - 17:55
Room 203
Session Chairs
Kwang-Sup LEE
Svetlana SANTER
Presenter(s)
Laura Hartmann (University Freiburg)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
Every infection starts with a pathogen navigating the glycocalyx and attachment to the host cell. The glycocalyx is a dense layer of various types of glycans and glycan-conjugates surrounding every cell and dictating the rules of cellular engagement. Despite their established importance, glycans remain largely unexplored. In addition, it becomes more and more evident, that the biological activity and function of the glycocalyx strongly depend on the localization and dynamic organization of the individual components. Based on their presentation on the cell membrane, glycan ensembles are highly dynamic, where clusters of higher glycan density are formed or dispersed, glycans may compete for binding, or step-wise engagement is required for binding, and subsequent functions such as uptake. Interestingly, not only binding components can affect attachment to a cell surface, but recent work has highlighted the importance of a tight interplay of both, binding and non-binding glycans. The key limitation in studying such dynamic glycocalyx interactions are missing tools such as defined and tuneable model systems.
To gain fundamental insights into the effects of glycocalyx dynamics and how they control infection, we introduce a new glycocalyx model using tailor-made precision glycomacromolecules that allow for selective control and tuning of structural parameters such as spatial organization, heterogeneity and dynamics of the glycan moieties. Glycomacromolecules are derived by combining solid phase polymer synthesis and controlled polymerization methodology and then introduced into giant unilamellar vesicles as simplified models of cell membranes. The talk will present first studies using this set-up to systematically investigate effects of crowding in heteromultivalent glycan ensembles, pre-organization of glycan-ligands in ordered phases or lipid rafts and the use of light-induced crosslinking to fix glycan clusters and perform so-called cluster imprinting.
To gain fundamental insights into the effects of glycocalyx dynamics and how they control infection, we introduce a new glycocalyx model using tailor-made precision glycomacromolecules that allow for selective control and tuning of structural parameters such as spatial organization, heterogeneity and dynamics of the glycan moieties. Glycomacromolecules are derived by combining solid phase polymer synthesis and controlled polymerization methodology and then introduced into giant unilamellar vesicles as simplified models of cell membranes. The talk will present first studies using this set-up to systematically investigate effects of crowding in heteromultivalent glycan ensembles, pre-organization of glycan-ligands in ordered phases or lipid rafts and the use of light-induced crosslinking to fix glycan clusters and perform so-called cluster imprinting.
