School of Pharmacy, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading RG6 6AD, UK.
Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading RG6 6AH, UK.
Bioorg Med Chem. 2021 Jan 15;30:115882. doi: 10.1016/j.bmc.2020.115882. Epub 2020 Nov 21.
N-Acetyl neuraminic acid (sialic acid) is a monosaccharide generally found as the terminating unit on glycans, which in turn are found on the surface of cells and glycoproteins. These glycans aid in a variety of biological functions such as cell interactions and immune response. Sialic acid has been identified as a biomarker for cardiovascular disease, diabetes and a range of other inflammatory and degenerative conditions. It has also been identified as a marker for different types of cancer. Sialic acid levels vary depending on the level of inflammation present during the course of an inflammatory disease and it is overexpressed by tumours as a shield against the immune system. Since the discovery of sialic acid, numerous assays have been developed for the identification and quantification of different sialic acid derivative monosaccharides and these assays fall into four main groups: colorimetric, fluorometric, enzymatic and chromatographic/mass spectrometric, with much overlap between these. Given the importance of sialic acids in biological pathways, this review article critically appraises assays that are used to detect and quantify sialic acid and its derivatives. Thus it details the method, sensitivity, specificity and wider scope of a range of assays, and concludes by suggesting some future directions for assay development and application. In this way, insight is provided into assays that allow for the accurate quantitation of sialic acid in biological samples, which may facilitate identification of the roles of sialic acid in healthy and disease pathways.
N-乙酰神经氨酸（唾液酸）是一种单糖，通常作为聚糖的末端单元存在，而聚糖又存在于细胞和糖蛋白的表面。这些聚糖有助于多种生物功能，如细胞相互作用和免疫反应。唾液酸已被确定为心血管疾病、糖尿病和一系列其他炎症和退行性疾病的生物标志物。它也被确定为不同类型癌症的标志物。唾液酸水平取决于炎症性疾病过程中存在的炎症水平，并且肿瘤过度表达以作为免疫系统的盾牌。自发现唾液酸以来，已经开发出许多用于鉴定和定量不同唾液酸衍生物单糖的方法，这些方法分为四大类：比色法、荧光法、酶法和色谱/质谱法，这些方法之间存在很大的重叠。鉴于唾液酸在生物途径中的重要性，本文批判性地评估了用于检测和定量唾液酸及其衍生物的方法。因此，它详细说明了一系列方法的方法、灵敏度、特异性和更广泛的范围，并通过提出一些未来的检测发展和应用方向得出结论。通过这种方式，深入了解了能够准确定量生物样本中唾液酸的检测方法，这可能有助于确定唾液酸在健康和疾病途径中的作用。
