RESUMO
Edible bird's nest (EBN) is the nest made from the saliva of Collocalia swift. Recently, we have found that EBN extract could strongly inhibit infection of influenza viruses in a host-range-independent manner [Guo, C. T.; Takahashi, T.; Bukawa, W.; Takahashi, N.; Yagi, H.; Kato, K.; Hidari, K. I.; Miyamoto, D.; Suzuki, T.; Suzuki, Y. Antiviral Res.2006, 70, 140-146]. Although this antiviral activity might be attributed to O- or N-glycoconjugates, no N-glycan structures have so far been described for EBN. Here, we report the N-glycosylation profile of EBN, in which a tri-antennary N-glycan bearing the alpha2,3-N-acetylneuraminic acid residues is displayed as a major component. We suggest that the sialylated high-antennary N-glycans of EBN contribute to the inhibition of influenza viral infection.