Carbohydrates and their conjugates play important roles in many biological processes including fertilization, differentiation, development, immune response, and infection. Their activities are largely dependent on the properties of terminal mono- or disaccharides. Galactose, mannose, fucose, glucose, sialic acid, etc., are commonly used as powerful scaffolds installed on drug molecules for targeting specific tissues including brain, liver, and cancers, and as epitopes for enhancing the targeting of various vaccines. This review focuses on the influence of their structural variations, including...
