November 16, 2020
Keio University
Associate Professor Daisuke Takahashi, Professor Kazunobu Toshima, and their research group at the Department of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University, have succeeded for the first time in the chemical synthesis of a unique glycan structure found in pathogenic *Escherichia coli* O1 by leveraging glycan synthesis reactions they have originally developed. Furthermore, they revealed that this glycan structure is a promising candidate antigenic glycan for the development of a vaccine against avian pathogenic *Escherichia coli* O1 (hereafter APEC O1).
APEC O1 is one of the pathogens that cause significant economic losses to the poultry industry. With concerns over zoonotic infections and the emergence of multidrug-resistant bacteria, vaccine development is urgently needed. However, conventional vaccine development often involves the direct use of mixtures of glycans and proteins extracted from pathogens. This approach has potential issues, as the structures are heterogeneous and may contain toxic components derived from the pathogens. Therefore, the development of highly safe glycoconjugate vaccines using chemical synthesis methods is gaining attention. It is expected that the candidate antigenic glycan for APEC O1 identified in this study will be utilized for the future development of highly safe glycoconjugate vaccines.
The results of this research were published in the online edition of the German Chemical Society's journal, *Angewandte Chemie International Edition*, on October 30, 2020.
Please see below for the full press release.