Lecture on “Sugars: more than just food” by Professor Gideon Davies, Department of Chemistry, University of York.
This talk is part of a series of lectures on a series of interdisciplinary lectures exploring the beneficial relationship between science and society organised by CIC bioGUNE in collaboration with the British Council.
Sugars: such a small word, but such a vast array of molecules and functions. Sugars are not just the simple white chemicals we use to sweeten tea and coffee! Structural sugars are what keeps cells intact, makes trees tall and lobster shells hard. Complex sugars are the language of your cells, the way our body communicates with itself and with friends and foes. Sugars are how pandemic flu enters your body & how nasty bacteria hide from your immune system. But they are also the basis for new generations of medicines to fight bacteria, viruses, and cancer, perhaps even neurodegeneration. The health of your “good bacteria” in the intestines demands they are fed the correct sugars in their diet. In this lecture Prof. Davies shall discuss the many surprising roles for sugars in our everyday lives.