Recent advances in the synthesis of sialic acid derivatives and sialylmimetics as biological probes

The more salient features of the recent advances in sialic acid chemistry is discussed. Initially, the synthesis and structural modifications of sialic acids themselves, primarily in relation to N-acetylneuraminic acid are described. The complexity of the chemistry of sialic acid and their derivatives has spawned intense interest in the development of mimetics of sialic acids over recent years. This paper gives an overview of sialylmimetic chemistry and highlights the structural diversity that is possible in such sialylmimetics while maintaining excellent mimicry.