Structural Basis for Norovirus Inhibition by Human Milk Oligosaccharides.
Weichert, S., Koromyslova, A., Singh, B.K., Hansman, S., Jennewein, S., Schroten, H., Hansman, G.S.(2016) J Virol 90: 4843-4848
- PubMed: 26889023 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1128/JVI.03223-15
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
5HZA, 5HZB - PubMed Abstract: 
Histo-blood group antigens (HBGAs) are important binding factors for norovirus infections. We show that two human milk oligosaccharides, 2'-fucosyllactose (2'FL) and 3-fucosyllactose (3FL), could block norovirus from binding to surrogate HBGA samples. We found that 2'FL and 3FL bound at the equivalent HBGA pockets on the norovirus capsid using X-ray crystallography. Our data revealed that 2'FL and 3FL structurally mimic HBGAs. These results suggest that 2'FL and 3FL might act as naturally occurring decoys in humans.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Pediatric Infectious Diseases Unit, University Children's Hospital Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.