1. School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Cantock's Close, Bristol, BS8?1TS (UK), Fax: (+44)?117‐929‐8611;2. Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas, CSIC, Madrid (Spain);3. Instituto de Química Organica, CSIC, Madrid (Spain);4. Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, University of Georgia (USA)
Abstract:
Carbohydrates are slippery customers in water. Camouflaged by solvent‐mimicking hydroxy groups, they make challenging targets, even for natural receptors. In their Communication on page 1775 ff., A. P. Davis and co‐workers describe a synthetic receptor that is remarkably effective for the important β‐N‐acetylglucosaminyl (β‐GlcNAC) unit. The affinities of the receptor are good and its selectivities are excellent, even by the standards of natural carbohydrate‐binding proteins.
