Fig. 6.

Nanoscale glycomaterials armed with lipid anchors can be introduced directly into the cellular glycocalyx via insertion into the extracellular leaflet of the plasma membrane. (A) Surface engineering with polymers carrying sialoglycans to mimic the hypersialylation state of cancer cells revealed the role of sialylation in evading surveillance by NK cells. Trans-interactions between cancer cell sialoglycans and the NK cell-surface receptor, Siglec 7, attenuated NK cell cytotoxicity. (B) Glycopolymers with affinity for the FGF2 restored FGF-mediated signaling in Ext1^−/− ESCs lacking functional proteoglycan co-receptors and enabled neural differentiation. This figure is available in black and white in print and in color at Glycobiology online.