Tracking Cellular Sugar

Tracking Cellular Sugar http://www.livescience.com/16166-cellular-sugar-traffic-nsf-ria.html

Cells have a coating called a glycocalyx made of complex sugars called glycans. Glycans are involved in processes such as cell communication, immune response, and early development. Researchers are studying glycans to understand and develop treatments for diseases.

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley tagged zebrafish glycans with fluorescent molecules to study how the embryos develop. They chose zebrafish because the embryos are transparent and they are a common model organism. This work can lead to early markers for disease such as cancer, tuberculosis, HIV, muscular dystropy, malaria, and other diseases. Glycans are important because viruses and bacteria attach to these sugars on the host cell's surface.

If this leads to a cure for diseases then it is a good thing and can affect many lives positively