AUTHOR=Wang Jie , Zhang Yukun , Lu Qi , Xing Dongming , Zhang Renshuai 

TITLE=Exploring Carbohydrates for Therapeutics: A Review on Future Directions

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pharmacology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2021.756724

DOI=10.3389/fphar.2021.756724

ISSN=1663-9812

ABSTRACT=<p>Carbohydrates are important components of foods and essential biomolecules performing various biological functions in living systems. A variety of biological activities besides providing fuel have been explored and reported for carbohydrates. Some carbohydrates have been approved for the treatment of various diseases; however, carbohydrate-containing drugs represent only a small portion of all of the drugs on the market. This review summarizes several potential development directions of carbohydrate-containing therapeutics, with the hope of promoting the application of carbohydrates in drug development.</p>