CMP-Sialic acid is a form of the sugar N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) O-linked with the nucleotide cytidine-5’-monophosphate (CMP). In vertebrates, it is biosynthesized within the nucleus from CTP and Neu5Ac by CMP-sialic acid synthetases.[1] Sialyltransferases transfer Neu5Ac from CMP-sialic acid to various acceptor substrates, most commonly at terminal positions of the oligosaccharide component of glycoproteins or glycolipids.[2],[3] Sialic acid-containing glycans at the cell surface play important roles in cell interactions and have roles in infection, inflammation, and cancer.[3],[4],[5]
Reference:
[1]. Münster-Kühnel, A.K., Tiralongo, J., Krapp, S., et al. Structure and function of vertebrate CMP-sialic acid synthetases. Glycobiology 14(10), 43R-51R (2004).
[2]. Tsuji, S. Molecular cloning and functional analysis of sialyltransferases. Journal of Biochemistry 120(1), 1-13 (1996).
[3]. Audry, M., Jeanneau, C., Imberty, A., et al. Current trends in the structure-activity relationships of sialyltransferases. Glycobiology 21(6), 716-726 (2011).
[4]. Hennet, T. From glycosylation disorders back to glycosylation: What have we learned? Biochim.Biophys.Acta. 1792(9), 921-924 (2009).
[5]. Samraj, A.N., Läubli, H., Varki, N., et al. Involvement of a non-human sialic acid in human cancer. Front.Oncol. 4, 33 (2014).