Recent Advances in the Synthesis of Glycodendrimers with Antiviral and Antibacterial Activity.

Glycodendrimers are an important class of synthetic macromolecules that can be used to mimic many structural and functional features of cell surface glycoconjugates. Their carbohydrate moieties perform key important functions in bacterial and viral infections, often regulated by carbohydrate-protein interactions. Several studies have shown that the molecular structure, the valency and spatial organization of carbohydrate epitopes in glycoconjugates are key factors in the specificity and avidity of carbohydrate-protein interactions. Choosing the right glycodendrimers almost always helps to interfere in such interactions and blocks bacteria o viral adhesion or entry into host cells as an effective strategy to inhibit bacterial or viral infections. In this review, we describe the state of the art in the design and synthesis of glycodendrimers employed for the development of anti-adhesion therapy against bacterial and viral infections.Glycodendrimers are an important class of synthetic macromolecules that can be used to mimic many structural and functional features of cell surface glycoconjugates. Their carbohydrate moieties perform key important functions in bacterial and viral infections, often regulated by carbohydrate-protein interactions. Several studies have shown that the molecular structure, the valency and spatial organization of carbohydrate epitopes in glycoconjugates are key factors in the specificity and avidity of carbohydrate-protein interactions. Choosing the right glycodendrimers almost always helps to interfere in such interactions and blocks bacteria o viral adhesion or entry into host cells as an effective strategy to inhibit bacterial or viral infections. In this review, we describe the state of the art in the design and synthesis of glycodendrimers employed for the development of anti-adhesion therapy against bacterial and viral infections.