CH-[pi] interactions play a central role in protein recognition of carbohydrates/

Carbohydrate-protein interactions play a central role in biology, but knowledge of the forces underlying them is limited. Carbohydrates are generally hydrophilic and therefore present unique challenges in their recognition. One underappreciated force involved in carbohydrate-protein interactions is the CH-[pi] interaction, an attractive interaction between the aliphatic protons of a carbohydrate and the [pi] system of an aromatic ring. In this thesis, I examine the fundamental nature, strength, and biological significance of this interaction, largely in the context of a family of carbohydrate-binding proteins known as galectins. In Chapter 1, I review previous knowledge of the forces underlying carbohydrate-binding proteins and the forces they utilize to bind their ligands. In particular, I focus on CH-[pi] interactions and galectins.

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctoral

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemistry

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2021

Author dc:creator

• Diehl, Roger Christopher.

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Laura L. Kiessling.

• Chemistry.

Statement dc:rights

• MIT theses may be protected by copyright. Please reuse MIT thesis content according to the MIT Libraries Permissions Policy, which is available through the URL provided.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/130817

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/130817