The Role of Glycans in Chronic Inflammatory Gastrointestinal and Liver Disorders and Cancer

Carbohydrate structures (glycans) cover the surface of all mammalian cells, being fundamental for inter- and intracellular signaling, immune defense, inflammation, cell adhesion and pathogen invasion, both in health and disease. Alterations in the glycome (repertoire of glycans structures in an organism) are known to occur in several gastrointestinal and liver diseases, including inflammatory and autoimmune disorders as well as in cancer. The lack of effective (early) diagnosis, accurate prognostic markers and targeted treatments for these gastrointestinal pathologies highlights the unmet need to develop novel biomarkers and therapeutic strategies. In this context, protein glycosylation has emerged as a groundbreaking approach to mechanistically understand the pathogenesis of the different gastrointestinal diseases with the promise to reveal novel glycan-based biomarkers and treatments. This chapter encompasses updated evidences on the relevance of cellular glycosylation in the immunopathogenesis of gastrointestinal disorders, with a focus on inflammatory bowel disease, inflammatory hepatic disorders, gastrointestinal and liver cancers, highlighting the potential of glycans as effective biomarkers and innovative therapeutic and preventive strategies with clinical applications.