Carbohydrate-functionalized surfactant vesicles for controlling the density of glycan arrays

We report on the development of a method for rapidly characterizing the glycan binding properties of lectins. Catanionic surfactant vesicles, prepared from cationic and anionic surfactants, spontaneously formed in water and remained stable at room temperature for months. By varying the amount of glycoconjugate added during preparation, glycans were incorporated onto the outer surface of the vesicles in a controlled range of densities. The carbohydrate-functionalized vesicles were applied to commercially available, nitrocellulose-coated slides to generate glycan arrays. As proof of concept, the binding of two lectins, concanavalin A and peanut agglutinin, to the arrays was quantified using a biotin-avidin fluorescence sandwich assay. This facile method of preparing a glycan array by using vesicles to control the glycan density can be expanded to provide a platform for characterizing unknown lectins.

► We developed a facile method for measuring carbohydrate–lectin interactions.
► Vesicles were functionalized with glycans in a controlled range of densities.
► Glycan-functionalized vesicles were deposited onto a nitrocellulose surface.
► Glycan density of the array was easily varied through fabrication of the vesicles.
► Differences in binding of model lectins to the glycan array were measured.