Carbohydrates are important but challenging targets for supramolecular chemists. They possess complex, irregular and variable structures, and are strongly attracted to water, their natural environment. This tutorial review describes work on synthetic receptors which bind carbohydrates through non-covalent interactions, mimicking the strategies used in biology. Emphasis is placed on systems which operate in purely aqueous solution, without involvement of organic solvents. Although the problem is difficult, the careful design of complementary cavities can lead to surprisingly good results. In particular, a receptor for glucose has achieved performance which generally matches biology, and augurs well for real-world applications.

中文翻译：

---

仿生碳水化合物识别。

碳水化合物是超分子化学家重要但具有挑战性的目标。它们具有复杂，不规则和可变的结构，并且强烈吸引其自然环境水。本教程概述描述了通过非共价相互作用结合碳水化合物的合成受体的工作，模仿了生物学中使用的策略。重点放在纯水溶液中运行的系统中，而无需有机溶剂的参与。尽管问题很棘手，但精心设计互补型腔可以产生出乎意料的良好效果。特别地，用于葡萄糖的受体已经获得了通常与生物学匹配的性能，并且对于现实世界的应用预示着良好的发展。