Glycosynthase with Broad Substrate Specificity – an Efficient Biocatalyst for the Construction of Oligosaccharide Library

A versatile glycosynthase (TnG-E338A) with strikingly broad substrate scope has been developed from Thermus nonproteolyticus β-glycosidase (TnG) by using site-directed mutagenesis. The practical utility of this biocatalyst has been demonstrated by the facile generation of a small library containing various oligosaccharides and a steroidal glycoside (total 25 compounds) in up to 100 % isolated yield. Moreover, an array of eight gluco-oligosaccharides has been readily synthesized by the enzyme in a one-pot, parallel reaction, which highlights its potential in the combinatorial construction of a carbohydrate library that will assist glycomic and glycotherapeutic research. Significantly, the enzyme provides a means by which glycosynthase technology may be extended to combinatorial chemistry.