GlycoBase and autoGU: resources for interpreting HPLC-glycan data

The biological relevance of protein glycosylation has made glycomics, the comprehensive study to identify all glycans in an organism, indispensable in many research fi elds. Determining the structure and functional relationship of glycoproteins requires the comprehensive characterization of glycan structures by a range of analytical methods. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is a well-established technology commonly used for the complete structural elucidation of N - and O –linked glycans; however, the analysis of data is a major bottleneck and robust bioinformatics solutions are required. This chapter describes the availability of databases and tools, GlycoBase and autoGU developed in conjunction with the EUROCarbDB initiative, to assist the interpretation of HPLC-glycan data collections.