A bstract This review summarizes the recent research development on vertebrate sialidase
biology. Sialic acid-containing compounds play important roles in many physiological
processes, including cell proliferation, apoptosis and differentiation, control of cell adhesion,
immune surveillance, and clearance of plasma proteins. In this context, sialidases, the
glycohydrolases that remove the terminal sialic acid at the non-reducing end of various
glycoconjugates, perform an equally pivotal function. Sialidases in higher organisms are …