Oligosaccharide recognition by selectins: Synthesis and biological activity of multivalent sialyl lewis-X ligands

Abstract Trivalent sialyl Lewis-X ligands 6–8 anchored onto flexible templates have been synthesized and evaluated as inhibitors of E-selectin and P-selectin mediated cell adhesion in cell culture assays and in vivo. Biological activities in vitro correlated with spacer length and lead to ligands with 3-fold (E-selectin) and 5-fold (P-selectin) improved receptor binding avidity per single tetrasaccharide moiety.