Precise Synthesis of Glycopolymers and Protein Modification: Expanding Applications in Life Sciences

Glycopolymers are synthetic functional polymers containing numerous saccharide moieties in their side chains. They exhibit the “glycocluster effect,” which is a multivalent effect with glycoreceptors, such as lectins. Recently, there have been several reports on the conjugation of glycopolymers with proteins and antibodies to enhance their functionality. This review summarizes precise methods for synthesizing glycopolymers, their conjugation with proteins, and various applications of glycopolymer-modified proteins. In addition, glycopolymer-modified antibodies, which have received considerable attention in recent years, are discussed.