Creating new tools to detect specific sugars in biological samples
Official title: Engineered Pan-Specific Reagents for N-Glycan Detection and Enrichment
Funded at Lectenz Bio, INC. · NIH-11174994 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is working on creating special tools that can better find and analyze certain sugars in the body that are important for understanding diseases, helping scientists and doctors improve how they diagnose and study health conditions.
Quick facts
| Grant type | Sbir 2 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Lectenz Bio, INC. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Athens, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2023 |
| Project end | August 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2024 |
| Award (this year) | $1,018,214 |
| NIH project number | 4R44OD035390-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11174994 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are individuals with conditions where glycan biomarkers are relevant, such as certain cancers or degenerative neurologic disorders.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who do not have conditions associated with glycan abnormalities or who are not undergoing diagnostic testing related to glycans may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research focuses on developing specialized reagents that can detect and enrich N-glycans, which are complex sugars important for various biological processes and disease markers. The approach involves engineering glycan-binding proteins using advanced techniques like computational modeling and directed evolution to create high-affinity reagents. These reagents will help improve the detection and analysis of glycans in biological samples, which is crucial for understanding diseases and developing new diagnostics. By enhancing the specificity and affinity of these reagents, the research aims to provide better tools for scientists and clinicians.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could lead to improved diagnostic tools for various diseases by enabling more accurate detection of glycan biomarkers.
How similar studies have gone: Other research has shown promise in developing glycan-specific reagents, indicating that this approach has potential for success.
Where this research is happening
-
Lectenz Bio, INC.
Athens, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wu, Sheng-Cheng — Lectenz Bio, INC.
- Study coordinator: Wu, Sheng-Cheng
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Innovative glycan-based tools to find cancer biomarkers
A new project will create highly specific sugar-targeting reagents to help detect cancer biomarkers more accurately.
-
Monitoring sugar modifications in protein production
This study is testing a new method called GlycoSenseTM to make it easier and faster to check the sugar structures on therapeutic proteins, which helps ensure these treatments are safe and effective for patients.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.