Diverse alterations of glycosylation occur in diseases such as cancer, metastasis, leukemia, inflammatory and other diseases. The glycosylation abnormalities found in disease are the result of complex rearrangements of the oligosaccharide assembly by glycosyltransferases. This volume reviews several mechanisms that may underly the extremely complex alterations in disease. Disease specific glycosylation may contribute to the disease process by altering cellular functions, or may be exploited therapeutically. Specific therapy may be aimed at correcting glycosylation abnormalities based on knowledge of the mechanisms leading to the disease phenotype and the three-dimensional interactions between carbohydrates and carbohydrate-binding molecules.

1. Abstract

2. Introduction
3. Structures of ?-N-Acetylgalactosamine-Ser/Thr-Linked Oligosaccharides (O-glycans)
4. Biosynthesis of O-Glycans
5. Structures of ?-N-Acetylglucosamine-Asn-Linked Oligosaccharides (N-Glycans)
6. Biosynthesis of N-Glycans
7. Less Common O-Linked Carbohydrates of Glycoproteins
8. Control Mechanisms in the Biosynthesis of N- and O-Glycans
9. Glycoproteins and Cell Adhesion Functions
10. Role of Glycoproteins of the Immune and Blood Coagulation Systems
11. Growth and Hormone-Related Functions of Glycoproteins and Cell Surface Receptors
12. General Glycoprotein Functions
13. Glycosylation in Leukemia and Blood Related Disorders
14. Glycosylation in Cystic Fibrosis
15. Inflammatory Diseases
16. Carbohydrate Deficiency Diseases
17. Microorganisms
18. Glycoproteins in Degenerative Disease and Xenograft Rejection
19. Glycosylation in Cancer and Oncogenic Transformation
20. Intestinal Cancer
21. Pancreatic and Liver Cancer
22. Cancer of the Urinary and Reproductive Tracts
23. Lung Cancer
24. Breast Cancer
25. Glycoproteins in Other Cancers
26. Metastasis
27. Diagnosis and Therapy
28. Conclusions.