Recent advances in capillary electrophoresis separation of monosaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharidesThis article illustrates the basis and applications of methodologies for the analysis of simple and complex carbohydrates by means of CE. After a description of the most common and novel approaches useful for the analysis and characterization of carbohydrates, this review covers the recent advances in CE separation of monosaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides. Various CE techniques are also illustrated for the study of carbohydrates derived from complex glyco-derivatives such as glycoproteins and glycolipids, essential for biopharmaceutical and glycoproteomics applications as well as for biomarker detection. Most glycans have no significant UV absorption, and derivatization with fluorophore groups prior to separation usually results in higher sensitivity and an improved electrophoretic profile. We also discuss the recent applications and separations by CE of derivatized simple and more complex carbohydrates with different chromophoric active tags. Overall, this review aims to give an overview of the most recent state-of-the-art techniques used in carbohydrate analysis by CE.
Keywords:Capillary Electrophoresis / Laser-induced fluorescence / Monosaccharides / Oligosaccharides / Polysaccharides DOI 10.1002/elps.201700290
IntroductionCarbohydrates are considered important key molecules and the largest group of biomolecules. Among these, monosaccharides are the simplest units forming complex macromolecules and glucose is certainly one of the most important carbohydrates for life. Furthermore, complex macromolecules include diverse subgroups such as polysaccharides, proteoglycans, glycolipids, and glycoproteins. Carbohydrates are also a relatively new subject of medical research as they play important roles in biological functions such as cell-cell and cell-host interaction, regulation of the pro-or anti-inflammatory abilities of immunoglobulins according to their level of sialylation, cellular trafficking, solubility of proteins, and assistance in protein folding. Alterations Qualitative and quantitative elucidation of carbohydrates is a challenging task due to the lack of either chromophoric or fluorophoric functional groups and low extinction coefficients of the monosaccharide structure. Moreover, the structural complexities of glycans, along with their diversity [5], and the unique tendency toward branching, different linkages, and isomerism generally present formidable challenges.CE has attracted considerable attention in the recent advances in glycomic analysis. CE is suitable for both derivatized and underivatized carbohydrates and it is established as a powerful and versatile separation tool because of the brief analysis time, the ability to handle very complex glycan mixtures with high sensitivity, the minute quantities of samples and reagent required, the capacity to resolve isomeric glycans, and the possibility to acquire high resolution obtained under physiological conditions [5]. I...