The success of investigations on the structure and function of the genome (genomics) has been paralleled by an equally awesome progress in the analysis of protein structure and function (proteomics). We propose that the investigation of carbohydrate structures that go beyond a cell’s metabolism is a rapidly developing frontier in our expanding knowledge on the structure and function of carbohydrates (glycomics). No other functional system appears to be suited as well as the nervous system to study the functions of glycans, which had been originally characterized outside the nervous system. In this review, we describe the multiple studies on the functions of Lewis^X, the human natural killer cell antigen-1 (HNK-1), as well as oligomannosidic and sialic (neuraminic) acids. We attempt to show the sophistication of these structures in ontogenetic development, synaptic function and plasticity, and recovery from trauma, with a view on neurodegeneration and possibilities to ameliorate deterioration. In view of clinical applications, we emphasize the need for glycomimetic small organic compounds which surpass the usefulness of natural glycans in that they are metabolically more stable, more parsimonious to synthesize or isolate, and more advantageous for therapy, since many of them pass the blood brain barrier and are drug-approved for treatments other than those in the nervous system, thus allowing a more ready access for application in neurological diseases. We describe the isolation of such mimetic compounds using not only Western NIH, but also traditional Chinese medical libraries. With this review, we hope to deepen the interests in this exciting field.

基因组的结构和功能（基因组学）研究的成功与蛋白质结构和功能（蛋白质组学）的分析取得了同样的惊人进展。我们认为，对碳水化合物的结构和功能（糖组学）的认识不断扩展，对超出细胞代谢的碳水化合物结构的研究是一个快速发展的前沿。似乎没有其他功能系统与神经系统一样适合研究聚糖的功能，而聚糖最初是在神经系统以外进行表征的。在这篇综述中，我们描述了关于刘易斯^X功能的多项研究，人类自然杀伤细胞抗原1（HNK-1）以及寡甘露酸和唾液酸（神经氨酸）酸。我们试图显示这些结构在个体发育，突触功能和可塑性以及从创伤中恢复方面的复杂性，以期了解神经退行性变和缓解恶化的可能性。考虑到临床应用，我们强调需要糖模拟的小有机化合物，这些化合物要超越天然聚糖的用途，因为它们在代谢上更稳定，更易于合成或分离，并且对治疗更有利，因为它们中的许多通过血液除神经系统以外的其他治疗方法，均已批准使用脑屏障和药物，因此可以更容易地用于神经系统疾病。我们不仅描述了使用西方国家卫生研究院（NIH）分离的模拟化合物，而且还描​​述了传统中医库。通过这次审查，我们希望加深对该领域的兴趣。