Progress in research on the effects of sialic acid in mammalian reproductive function

Sialic acid is widely distributed in various organisms. It is a nine-carbon monosaccharide binding to the terminal of glycan chain on glycoprotein and glycolipid. It plays an important role in regulating the biological functions in organisms, and is closely related to the health and disease of human. In the mammalian reproductive system, sialic acid is not only critical in the maturation of physiological function of sperm and egg, the process of sperm-egg binding and embryo implantation, but also participates in many regulations of reproduction functions and the occurrence of reproduction abnormality, especially in unexplained infertility. In this review, we briefly report the recent research progress of sialic acid function in mammalian reproductive system. Key words: Sialic acid; Reproduction; Infertility