Martina Delbianco

Leveraging mirror-image glycans in carbohydrate materials Chirality has become a fundamental design principle to craft peptide materials. In contrast, the systematic exploitation of chirality to build glycan materials remains largely unexplored, despite the…

🔓Don't miss this #OpenAccess review from Dominik Weh & @delbiancom.bsky.social at @mpici.bsky.social in our latest issue looking at how mirror-image glycans can be leveraged to tailor carbohydrate materials

Check it out in full on our website🔽

De Novo Design of Glycan Foldamers with Programmable Tertiary Structure De novo molecular design has yielded proteins and peptides with structures and functions beyond those found in nature. Despite the potential for glycans to form a broader scope of well-defined tertiary architectures, owing to the numerous conjugation sites and stereocenters, no one has yet built glycans with targeted structures and functions from scratch. Here, we designed glycan sequences that fold into programmable 3D architectures. Starting from first-principles, we create a linear glycan that spontaneously adopts a rigid tertiary structure not reported for natural glycans. Considering stereochemical and spatial orientation, we identify a rigid trisaccharide turn unit that programs backbone directionality, driving folding into antiparallel geometry. The combination of this turn unit with multiple cellulose-like strands completes our design, stabilizing a tertiary sheet-like folding, as confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). To quantitatively evaluate the conformational landscape of our glycans in aqueous solution, we built a semiautomated protocol that integrates SAXS data with molecular dynamics simulations, demonstrating further the effectiveness of our design principles. This is an important step to design and control conformation populations, not just single structures in the solid state or of unknown prevalence in the solution phase. Together, these results show that glycans can be programmed to adopt rigid tertiary structures on demand, opening new avenues for de novo glycan-based architectures in synthetic glycobiology, catalysis, and materials science.

De novo design of glycan foldamers with programmable tertiary structure out today in @jacs.acspublications.org

Congrats to Yadiel!
With Nishu Yadav, Martin Rosenthal and Yu Ogawa

@mpici.bsky.social @cermav.bsky.social

pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Well done Dominik!
Leveraging Mirror-Image Glycans in #CarbohydrateMaterials out today in @orgbiomolchem.rsc.org !

@rsc.org, @mpici.bsky.social

pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...

Nishu Yadev celebrating after her PhD defense with her supervisor Martina Delbianco

Nishu Yadev posing with her lab mates after her PhD defense

Hats off to our latest #PhDone: Nishu Yadav explored how #carbohydrates can be engineered to fold into defined, stable structures. Just as in proteins and DNA, in carbohydrates too “form follows function”.

@freieuniversitaet.bsky.social Supervisor: @delbiancom.bsky.social

tinyurl.com/5hdm53px

Supramolecular Carbohydrate Assemblies with Tunable Glycan Surfaces Synthetic cellulose-based oligomers assemble into supramolecular nanomaterials with a molecularly controlled, dense presentation of carbohydrates on their surfaces, serving as biological cues.

Supramolecular Carbohydrate Assemblies with Tunable Glycan Surfaces out today in @angewandtechemie.bsky.social!

Congrats to Nives, Marlene, Junki, Jaap, Kai, Yu, and Katharina!

@mpici.bsky.social

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Surusch Djalali celebraitng his PHD

In his #PhD, Surusch Djalali examined structure-property correlations in #oligosaccharides to create #carbohydrate #foldamers & self-assembling materials. We are late in celebrating his achievement, but his paper on the 1st prototype for de novo #glycan design is here to stay!
tinyurl.com/bdfed6vz

🚀 Opportunity for Master’s Students! 🌟

Join us at the @mpici.bsky.social to build an innovative application to design carbohydrate structures as part of the #ERCPoC GlycoRoads project!

Check out our #glycotime work:
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Rapid and Reliable Conformational Analysis of Glycans by Small Angle X‐Ray Scattering Guided Molecular Dynamics Simulations By explicitly accounting for the conformational dynamics and hydration effects, the molecular dynamics simulations accurately predicted the small-angle X-ray scattering intensities of two glycan hair....

Well done Yadiel!

Rapid and Reliable Conformational Analysis of Glycans by Small Angle X-Ray Scattering Guided Molecular Dynamics Simulations

@mpici.bsky.social @cermav.bsky.social @chemistryeurope.bsky.social

chemistry-europe.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

🚀 Exciting Opportunity for Master's Students! 🌟
Join us at @mpici.bsky.social to build an innovative application to design carbohydrate structures as part of the ERC-funded GlycoRoads project!

🧬 Speaking at Foldamers 2025: Dr Martina Del Bianco, @delbiancom.bsky.social, Max Plank Institute, Germany

Dr Martina Del Bianco will be discussing designing carbohydrate foldamers.

📍 Register now: foldamers2025.com

Martina Delbianco Wins the Prestigious Feltrinelli Prize for Groundbreaking Research on Carbohydrate Materials

@delbiancom.bsky.social received the Feltrinelli #Prize for her research on carbohydrate-based materials. She synthesizes well-defined #carbohydrates using automated methods. With her team, she engineers synthetic sugar chains that adopt shapes from helices to sheets.
#chemsky
tinyurl.com/f7xjj57d

PhD Position in glycan synthesis and analysis

Join us for a #PhD in #glycotimes!

You'll be part of a collaboration between my group and Yu Ogawa's group at the @mpici.bsky.social to design carbohydrates that fold and assemble on demand.

#chemistryjobs #researchjobs

jobs.mpikg.mpg.de/jobposting/e...

Controlling Glycan Folding with Ionic Functional Groups Glycans are intrinsically flexible molecules that can adopt many conformations. These molecules often carry ionic functional groups that influence glycan’s conformational preferences, dynamics, and ag...

From spontaneous to controlled glycan folding! Check out our new chapter in glycan foldamers in @jacs.acspublications.org

Congrats to Nishu!

Great collaboration with Ana, Yadiel, Martin, Yu, Jesus, @cicbiogune.bsky.social, @cermav.bsky.social, @mpici.bsky.social

pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Thank you! ☺️

A glycan that performs catalysis - Nature Chemistry In nature, catalytic functions are typically restricted to proteins and ribozymes. Now, a synthetic glycan capable of catalysing a chemical reaction is demonstrated. The folded glycan scaffold positio...

A glycan that performs catalysis
Check out this Research Briefing in @natchem.nature.com

@mpici.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Steve Shirley - Wikipedia

Celebrating International Girls in ICT Day and honoring pioneers like Steve Shirley. Learn more about her story and why Stephanie became Steve: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_S...
www.ted.com/talks/dame_s...
www.steveshirley.com/story/
#GirlsInICT #WomenInTech #DiversityInTech #Leadership

Confirmed speaker list and details about the 2025 Carbohydrates GRC

Registration is open for the 2025 Gordon Research Conference on Carbohydrates and the associated Gordon Research Seminar! 🧪 We have a exciting line-up of confirmed speakers and more to be added!
www.grc.org/carbohydrate...
The conference will be held June 15 - 20 in Holderness, NH.

Research Fellow in Systems Chemistry at University of Birmingham Discover an exciting academic career path as a Research Fellow in Systems Chemistry at jobs.ac.uk. Don't miss out on this job opportunity - apply today!

🚨 #Postdoc opportunity in Systems Chemistry!🚨
Please Share!
Interested in creating new decision-making materials based on electrochemically programmable protein networks?
Then join my group!

2-year Postdoc supported by #ERC @erc.europa.eu at
@uobchemistry.bsky.social

#chemsky See link for more:

One week left to apply! Join our group at @mpici.bsky.social to build a software for #glycan design!

#glycotime #ERCPoC @erc.europa.eu

Against the odds: 12 women who beat bias to succeed in science A book deftly highlights how women have been considered unsuitable as researchers for reasons other than their ability and commitment.

Book review 📚 Against the odds: 12 women who beat bias to succeed in science

https://go.nature.com/4brxuAw

A glycan foldamer that uses carbohydrate–aromatic interactions to perform catalysis - Nature Chemistry In nature, catalysis is generally performed by proteins and ribozymes. Now it has been shown that glycans can be designed to perform catalysis. Exploiting carbohydrate–aromatic interactions, a glycan ...

A glycan foldamer that uses carbohydrate–aromatic interactions to perform catalysis, from Martina Delbianco @delbiancom.bsky.social and Kaimeng Liu.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...
#chemsky

On resin synthesis of phosphoethanolamine cellulose Phosphoethanoamine (pEtN) cellulose is a chemically modified cellulose present in some bacterial biofilms. To deepen our understanding of this biopolymer and its biological function, access to chemica...

here is the link to the original work in @orgbiomolchem.rsc.org

pubs.rsc.org/en/content/a...

Automated On-Resin Synthesis of Oligosaccharides Bearing a Phosphoethnolamine Unit Thieme E-Books & E-Journals

Thank you very much for this highlight of our paper!

www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejo...

Thank you!

A glycan foldamer that uses carbohydrate–aromatic interactions to perform catalysis - Nature Chemistry In nature, catalysis is generally performed by proteins and ribozymes. Now it has been shown that glycans can be designed to perform catalysis. Exploiting carbohydrate–aromatic interactions, a glycan ...

Can glycans catalyze chemical reactions?
Check out our glycan foldamer that uses carbohydrate–aromatic interactions to perform catalysis, today out in @naturechemistry.bsky.social

Big congrats to Kaimeng!

@mpici.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

ERC info sessions for Widening European Participation How to apply for an ERC grant? How to write a successful proposal? How to find support?

📢 ERC Info Sessions: Widening European Participation
🗓️ 6 & 12 March 2025 | ⏰ 9:30-12:00 CET | 🌐 Online
💡 Tips on ERC StG, CoG, AdG proposals, budgets & ethics.
✅ Learn from ERC experts & grantees.
🔗 Register 👉🏽 erc.europa.eu/news-events/...
#ERC2025 #ResearchFunding #HorizonEurope

Postdoctoral Position in Data Science for Glycan Design

Postdoctoral Position in Data Science for Glycan Design available in my group at @mpici.bsky.social!

Join us to develop a platform that integrates #moleculardynamics simulations and #dataanalytics to facilitate the design of #glycans

#glycotimes #ERCPoC

jobs.mpikg.mpg.de/jobposting/c...

Thank you very much for the great day!

Exploring LLMs in Scientific Writing
Shared my thoughts on the challenges & opportunities LLMs bring to research writing.
📖 Read here:https://www.mbp-rnc.com/news/archive
📅 Attending the "LLMs & Scientific Publishing" workshop on 11.02.2025 in Frankfurt!
#LLM #ScientificWriting

MBP-R&C: Strategic Research Consulting Services Key takeaways from the ERC PoC webinar:Eligibility, proposal strategy, and expert insights.

Missed the ERC PoC 2025 webinar? No worries—I’ve summarized the key takeaways!
📌 Eligibility, proposal strategy & expert insights—everything you need to strengthen your application.
📙 Read the full breakdown here: www.mbp-rnc.com
#ERCPoC #ResearchFunding #GrantWriting