We have a major interest in developing synthetic mimics of the glycocalyx (sugars on outside of all our cells) and glycoproteins. A key challenge is that most mimics are heterogeneous – e.g. polymers and nanoparticles have dispersity: hence you ‘cannot make the same material twice’ and you dont know exactly the what the structure will be, before you make it. Working with the Ward Group, Melissa and Callum developed a self-assembly route, using metal-organic cages, allowing us to ‘program’ the synthesis of perfect, monodisperse and reproducible glycoclusters. This was a huge synthetic/analytical challenge but we now have the tools to make precision glycomaterials, which would be identical anywhere in the world. Read the paper here
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