The present invention relates to the synthesis of GPI-related surface antigens of the parasite Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) and the resulting products obtained. These synthetic compounds are suitable for diagnosis of toxoplasmosis, as well as vaccine against toxoplasmosis, a diseases caused by infection with T. gondii.

The present invention generally relates to the field of detecting and preventing infectious diseases caused by Enterococcus faecalis and/or Enterococcus faecium. More specifically, the invention relates to an Enterococcus faecalis and/or Enterococcus faecium antigen which comprises at least one unit having the following general formula: ##STR00001##

The disclosure provides hydrogel compositions comprising polysaccharides with repeat units and methods of synthesis and usage.

Disclosed is a new and emerging serotype of Streptococcus pneumoniae designated serotype 6C, and assays and monoclonal antibodies useful in identifying same. Also disclosed is a novel pneumococcal polysaccharide with the repeating unit {2) glucose 1 (1.fwdarw.3) glucose 2 (1.fwdarw.3) rhamnose (1.fwdarw.3) ribitol (5.fwdarw.phosphate}. This new serotype may be included in pneumococcal vaccines.

The invention relates to novel saccharides and uses thereof. In one aspect, the invention relates to a saccharide having a legionaminic acid moiety, a N-acetylgalactosamine moiety, a galactose moiety, and a glucose moiety. In another aspect, the invention relates to a saccharide having an altruronic acid moiety, a fucose moiety, and a glucose moiety. In yet another aspect, the invention relates to a saccharide having a repeating unit of a glycerol phosphate moiety and a glucose moiety, wherein the saccharide is from Enterococcus faecium. In a further aspect, the invention relates to a saccharide having a repeating unit of -6-β-D-Fruf-2, wherein Fru is a fructose moiety, wherein the saccharide is from Enterococcus faecium. In another aspect, the invention relates to an isolated antibody or fragment thereof that specifically binds to a saccharide described herein and uses thereof.

An insulation product comprising fibers consolidated with a binder is disclosed to which a non-aqueous moisturizer has been included. The binder is disposed upon the fibers and the non-aqueous moisturizer is in contact with fibers and/or binder. The insulation product may be an uncured fiber insulation product in which the binder is an uncured binder. The insulation product may be packaged in a suitable material. Accordingly, disclosed is a packaged uncured fiber insulation product.

A method for the qualification and selection of manufacturing processes, raw materials, intermediates and batch production of pentosan polysulfate based on the identification of acetylated monosaccharide units, including units of xylose substituted with 4-O-methyl-glucuronic which also lead the acetyl group, as structural characterizing units, is disclosed.

[Problem to be Solved]

The importance of sugar chains having α2,3- or α2,6-linked sialic acid at their non-reducing ends is known. Industrial production has been demanded for these sugar chain compounds. Particularly, the production of glycoprotein drugs or the like inevitably requires producing in quantity sugar chains having homogeneous structures by controlling the linking pattern (α2,6-linkage or α2,3-linkage) of sialic acid. Particularly, a triantennary or tetraantennary N-type complex sugar chain having sialic acid at each of all non-reducing ends is generally considered difficult to chemically synthesize. There has been no report disclosing that such a sugar chain was chemically synthesized. Furthermore, these sugar chains are also difficult to efficiently prepare enzymatically.

[Solution]

The present inventors have newly found the activity of sialyltransferase of degrading sialic acid on a reaction product in the presence of CMP and also found that formed CMP can be degraded enzymatically to thereby efficiently produce a sialic acid-containing sugar chain. The present inventors have further found that even a tetraantennary N-type sugar chain having four α2,6-linked sialic acid molecules, which has previously been difficult to synthesize, can be prepared at high yields by one-pot synthesis comprising the elongation reaction of a biantennary sugar chain used as a starting material without performing purification after each enzymatic reaction.

The present invention provides a Peyer's patch activator containing a polysaccharide obtained from sugar cane as an active ingredient, wherein the polysaccharide contains α-glucan as a main component and has a peak molecular weight within a range of 720,000 to 1,080,000, with a proportion of glucose in all component sugars being 80% or more, and proportions of nonreducing terminal glucose and α-1,6-linked glucose being 20 to 30% and 15 to 25%, respectively.

The present inventions relates to a method for the production of gellan gum, under mixing conditions, the method comprising a) providing a fermentation broth or other liquid medium containing gellan gum, b) if necessary adjusting the temperature and the pH of the fermentation broth/liquid medium to allow or facilitate enzymatic treatment in step c, c) adding one or more enzymes capable of reducing or abolishing the enzymatic activity of S. elodea derived arylsulfatase and/or β-glucuronidase, said one or more enzymes being added in an amount sufficient to reduce or abolish the enzymatic activity of S. elodea derived arylsulfatase and/or β-glucuronidase in the broth/liquid medium, and/or treating the broth/liquid medium at a temperature between 90° C. and 125° C. for a period of time sufficient to reduce or abolish the enzymatic activity of S. elodea derived arylsulfatase and/or β-glucuronidase in the broth/liquid medium, and d) optionally recovering the gellan gum from the gellan gum containing broth/liquid medium.