Glycoconjugates of the Pancreas

This book presents the results of years of investigation into glycoconjugates in the digestive systems, particularly in the pancreas. The extensive and detailed information will connect basic science to practical clinical science and establish a foundation for future advancements in the uncharted field of research. This book is organized into three themed parts, describing the basic understanding of the etiology and pathophysiology of pancreatic diseases. It is particularly valuable that they are described along with many discoveries, including new substances in the field of glycoconjugates in the digestive organs. The first part describes the method of purification of glycoconjugates in pancreatic juice and the analysis of the structure of them. The second part describes the discovery that formed our basis of glycotechnology. It includes the novel method for synthesizing tailor-made hyaluronan with the transglycosylation reaction of hyaluronidase, and the innovative method for artificial synthesis of neoproteoglycan with endo-ß-xylosidase. The third part describes the application of 4-methylumbelliferone (4-MU), which was discovered as an effective hyaluronic acid synthesis inhibitor by us, to pancreatic cancer treatment. Significant anti-tumoral activity and a significant effect on metastasis inhibition of 4-MU was potentially found to help treat pancreatic cancer. This book will be of interest to many researchers and will broaden the scope of medical researchers specializing in digestive organs and diseases. We sincerely hope that one day this book will open the door to overcoming pancreatic cancer.