Development of Fully α-Selective Sialylation and Its Application in Glycan Synthesis

Sialic acid-containing glycans are crucial biomolecules involved in a wide variety of signal transduction processes within cell membranes. The chemical synthesis of sialylated oligosaccharides is indispensable in the functional elucidation and practical application of these glycans, but the stereocontrol of sialylation remains a major challenge. Previously, we developed a completely α-selective sialylation reaction, which enabled the synthesis of a wide range of glycans that were hitherto challenging to access. In this article, we provide an overview of the α-selective sialylation reactions developed to date and highlight the recent advances of the fully α-selective sialylation method developed by our group, along with its application in glycan synthesis.