Strong inhibition of cholera toxin by multivalent GM1 derivatives

Sticky fingers. The optimal ligand for the cholera toxin (CT), GM1-oligosaccharide (GM1os), was linked to dendritic structures that contained long spacer arms by using highly efficient “click” chemistry coupling. In the inhibition studies very large multivalency effects were observed; the best structure was an unprecedented 380 000-fold more potent ligand for the toxin than a monovalent GM1os derivative