bacterial carbohydrate recognition are conveyed, covering Gram-positive as well as Gram-negative bacteria, in Chapter 4 Streptococci and Staphylococci, and in Chapter 5, carbohydrate binding specificities of Helicobacter pylori. In Chapter 6, "Bitter sweetness of complexity," the collected reflections on mic- bial adhesion are expanded by a perspective on a broader impact of glycosylation on cellular adhesion, motility and regulatory processes, paralleling the complexity of N-glycan structures on cell surfaces. It highlights particularly how structural details of N-glycans have been causally related to pathological scenarios, with a focus on (1,6)-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase. In the final chapter, biofilm formation is reviewed, covering knowledge about structure and biosynthesis of polysaccharide intercellular adhesins (PIAs) which are central to biofilm formation. This comprehensive chapter explains all PIA-related principles of medical device-associated infections. It is our hope, that this collection of expert articles, ranging from structural ch- istry and structural biology to biochemistry and medicine, will be a stimulation and motivation for our colleagues in the life sciences. At the same time, we hope that these reflections on microbial adhesion will awake interest in and promote und- standing of the complex processes associated with the glycocalyx and the multif- eted interactions between the host cell and its "guest," as well as the biological consequences resulting from this mutual interplay.
| Author: Thisbe K. Lindhorst |
| Publisher: Springer |
| Publication Date: Jun 26, 2009 |
| Number of Pages: 186 pages |
| Binding: Hardback or Cased Book |
| ISBN-10: 3642013031 |
| ISBN-13: 9783642013034 |
