GlycoTech is focused on the biological functions and medical applications of glycoconjugates. The company has established its own research programs and has developed a large intellectual property portfolio. Through its catalog business, GlycoTech has also established one of the largest libraries of rare carbohydrate reagents and technologies worldwide. GlycoTech has maintained a corporate alliance with Novartis for the past six years to develop small molecule mimics of carbohydrate ligands as potent antagonists for the aberrant extravasation of lymphocytes from the bloodstream during transplantation-induced reperfusion injury. In addition, licensing agreements were recently established with Chiron Corporation for worldwide sales in cancer diagnostics using anti-carbohydrate tumor markers owned by GlycoTech. Research agreements have also been established with the National Institutes of Health, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Rochester, and the Chicago Institute for Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch. Currently, GlycoTech is involved in a corporate alliance with Novartis, Basel Switzerland. Objective: to develop novel compounds to inhibit the interaction of the selectins with their carbohydrate ligands for the treatment of disease (eg. inflammation) or conditions (eg. reperfusion injury) caused by the recruitment of leukocytes to affected tissues. GlycoTech also maintains a collaborative research agreement with the Chicago Institute for Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch to study the role of carbohydrates in the functioning of the central nervous system. Applications from this research involve novel therapeutic approaches for the treatment of brain tumors, Alzheimer's disease, and neurite regeneration.
