Article
Loss of N-glycolylneuraminic acid in humans: Mechanisms, consequences, and implications for hominid evolution.
American journal of physical anthropology - 1 Jan 2001
Varki A
Abstract excerpt
The surface of all mammalian cells is covered with a dense and complex array of sugar chains, which are frequently terminated by members of a family of molecules called sialic acids. One particular sialic acid called N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc) is widely expressed on most mammalian tissues, but is not easily detectable on human cells. In fact, it provokes an immune response in adult humans. The human...
Topics
- Animals
- Biological Evolution
- Brain
- Gene Expression
- Glycosylation
- Hominidae
- Humans
- Infections
- Mammals
- Mixed Function Oxygenases
- Mutation
- N-Acetylneuraminic Acid
- Neuraminic Acids