one aspect of the invention relates to a method of directed evolution of carbohydrate - oligonucleotide conjugates . in certain embodiments , a large library of carbohydrate - modified oligonucleotides structures is synthesized , and then a therapeutically - useful monoclonal antibody is used to bind those members of the library which best resemble its native epitope . in certain embodiments , pcr enables amplification or diversification of the best binders from the first library , and the best epitope mimics are selected from subsequent library generations to provide improved binders . in certain embodiments , the carbohydrate - oligonucleotide conjugates obtained from the process present carbohydrates in an environment similar to that of the natural epitope , containing the optimal number of oligosaccharides , with the optimal spacing and conformation , and surrounded by oligonucleotide structures which mimic any necessary peptide component of the natural epitope . in certain embodiments , such a compound , when formulated with the appropriate immunogenic carrier and adjuvant , would constitute a vaccine . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method of preparing and identifying a vaccine against a disease for which therapeutically - useful antibodies are known to bind to a carbohydrate structure . in certain embodiments , dna is used as a backbone for carbohydrate vaccines . in certain embodiments , the disease is hiv / aids . in certain embodiments , the therapeutically - useful antibody is 2g12 . in certain embodiments , the disease is cancer . in certain embodiments , the therapeutically - useful antibody recognizes a cancer antigen . in certain embodiments , the therapeutically - useful antibody is rav12 . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method of preparing and identifying oligosaccharide - oligonucleotide conjugates which selectively disrupt a physiological glycoprotein - glycoprotein or protein - glycoprotein interaction in which the interaction involves pendant carbohydrate moieties of one or both of the participants . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method of designing and identifying a novel carbohydrate cluster antigen by attaching carbohydrates to a library of dna backbones and performing aptamer selection with 2g12 . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method of designing and identifying glyco - dnas in which the backbone clusters the carbohydrates in the optimal manner . as opposed to the numerous dna vaccine approaches , in which dna is delivered via viral vectors or gold particles and merely codes for a protein antigen , it is important to clarify that , in certain embodiments , the inventive glyco - dna will be injected as a free molecule in μg quantities , because it is itself the antigen . in certain embodiments , the glyco - dna fulfills three roles : 1 ) to orient optimally the attached carbohydrates in a position that mimics their presentation in the true 2g12 epitope , 2 ) to mimic structurally any possible peptide residues within the 2g12 epitope , and 3 ) to serve as a built - in adjuvant . in certain embodiments , the functioning of the glyco - dna as a built - in adjuvant is in contrast with other carbohydrate vaccine approaches , where the carbohydrates were conjugated to proteins or peptides , and mostly failed to elicit anti - carbohydrate antibodies . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method of eliciting a 2g12 - like polyclonal antibody response . given that monoclonal 2g12 antibody neutralizes a broad - range of hiv - 1 strains and has a demonstrated protective effect in non - human primate models of hiv infection , there is good reason to believe that a 2g12 - like polyclonal antibody response would also be protective . in certain embodiments , to elicit a 2g12 - like response , two challenges must be overcome : 1 ) to develop an immunogen which structurally and conformationally mimics the 2g12 epitope , and 2 ) to overcome the poor immunogenicity of the carbohydrate epitope . in certain embodiments , the first challenge is addressed in the inventive methods by using 2g12 to select the best design of carbohydrate cluster from among trillions of possibilities . in certain embodiments , the second challenge is addressed in the inventive methods because the vaccine contains a dna backbone . dna is known to be a potent adjuvant , activating numerous toll receptor pathways . in certain embodiments , a method begins with a library of single - stranded dna hairpins , wherein the 3 ′ end of each hairpin is a primer for transcription across the randomized dna template region of the hairpin . in certain embodiments , a primer annealed to the loop region of the hairpin initiates strand displacement - synthesis , thereby ( 1 ) liberating the transcribed strand to allow folding , and ( 2 ) linearizing the dna template by making it double - stranded . man 9 glcnac 2 oligosaccharides present in the 2g12 epitope of hiv surface protein gp120 have been synthesized . the structures of potentially desirable compounds may be simplified by substituting for the two glcnac residues a simple cyclohexyl linker bearing an azide ( fig7 ). fig8 depicts the synthesis of man 4 - cyclohexyl azide ( 2 ) used in the oligonucleotide conjugate selection . glycosyl donor 1 was prepared in seven steps from mannose according to literature methods . then , the β - mannosylation conditions of crich were modified by use of excess glycosyl acceptor ( as compared to substoichiometric acceptor , as described by crich ). this modification suppressed overglycosylation of the acceptor ( at nitrogen ) and preserved a good diastereomeric ratio ( 13 : 1 ) at the β - mannose center . the nitrogen was protected as a carbamate to give 2 . sinay coupling with 3 then proceeded to give 4 in 70 % isolated yield , after separation of a small amount ( 1 : 4 ) of the minor β - anomer . global deprotection gave the man 4 cyclohexylamine intermediate in nearly quantitative yield . this product was subjected to diazotransfer to give the azide 5 . in this case , using 10 mol % cuso 4 catalyst and six equivalents of tfn 3 gave better yields than wong &# 39 ; s method using 1 mol % catalyst and three equivalents of tfn 3 . the ssdna - dsdna hybrid library formed according to fig1 a - d was incubated with 2g12 , and the 2g12 - bound library fraction was captured with protein a beads . the 2g12 - bound library fraction was eluted from the beads by thermal denaturation and subjected to pcr with biotinylated primer 2 to give the 2 nd - generation library in purely dsdna format ( fig1 f and 14 k ), which gave the expected sharp 80 - bp band on the page gel ( lane 9 ). the library was converted back to its hairpin form in three steps : 1 ) removal of primer - 2 - derived biotinylated strand , 2 ) polymerase extension with an overhanging biotinylated strand to afforded 120 - bp product ( fig1 h and 14 k , lane 10 ), and 3 ) removal of the biotinylated strand from the 120 - bp duplex and polymerase extension in the presence of datp , dctp , dgtp and edutp , afforded the 2 nd - generation library in duplex hairpin form ( fig1 k , lane 11 , identical to lane 2 ). the cycle of library generation and selection was repeated ; enrichment was assessed by monitoring the number of pcr cycles required to regenerate the library . rounds 2 , 4 , and 6 included a negative selection to remove aptamers that bound to protein a beads . no improvement was observed between rounds 5 , 6 and 7 , so the selection was terminated and the resulting pcr products were cloned . twenty clones were randomly selected for sequencing . seventeen sequences were obtained , which included two pairs of duplicates and fifteen unique sequences with no apparent similarity ( fig1 ). these oligonucleotides contained 7 - 14 ts , reflecting the affinity of 2g12 for multiple carbohydrate moieties . these observations suggest that the selection may not have converged on the highest affinity aptamers . future selections may be improved by limiting the number of positions containing edu and increasing the stringency of the selection with the inclusion of a competitor . six clones were chosen for further evaluation ( 4 / 5 , 16 / 23 , 18 , 19 , 21 , 22 ). the single - stranded portions of these clones were synthesized and glycosylated ( see supporting information ). both page and mass spectral analysis confirmed that the cuaaac glycosylation step resulted in a significant portion of fully glycosylated product , though it was generally mixed with species lacking 1 - 2 glycosylations ( see example 17 ). all six of the glycosylated clones bound to 2g12 in a filter binding assay . three clones containing 10 glycosylation sites were chosen for further analysis . clones 4 / 5 , 16 / 23 and 18 displayed moderate affinity for 2g12 with values of k d = 270 ± 40 nm , 220 ± 50 nm and 330 ± 30 nm , respectively ( fig1 a ). importantly , no binding was observed with the initial library or with a random oligonucleotide containing ten glycosylated residues . therefore 2g12 binding is not simply the result of polyvalent interactions with multiple glycosylated residues . the binding determinants of clone 16 / 23 were further dissected ( fig1 b ). the duplex form of clone 16 / 23 bound 2g12 significantly less efficiently than the single stranded version . no binding was observed in the absence of glycosylation . gratifyingly , binding was significantly diminished in the presence of gp120 , indicating that gp120 and clone 16 / 23 compete for the same site on 2g12 . a series of mutagenesis experiments on clone 16 / 23 were conducted , starting with truncation at both the 5 ′ and 3 ′ ends in short increments ( fig1 , entries 1 - 8 ). the extreme ends are not essential for binding to 2g12 ; however , significant reduction in affinity was observed when the truncations extended beyond the first and last glycosylation sites . point mutagenesis was performed , replacing each glycosylated edu residue with cytosine ( fig1 , entries 9 - 21 ). seven of these mutations produced little change in the value of k d ; however , mutations in the 2 nd , 4 th , and 10 th glycosylation positions ( entries 11 , 13 and 19 ) caused a drastic loss of binding ( k d & gt ;& gt ; 800 nm ). glycoaptamers containing only these three glycoslyation sites ( entries 20 and 21 ) failed to bind to 2g12 , indicating that glycoslyation of these sites is necessary but not sufficient for 2g12 binding . glycosylation at the remaining sites may be important for the gross conformational features of the aptamer . both of these findings are consistent with mutagenesis studies that showed only a small subset of gp120 &# 39 ; s dozen high - mannose glycans are required for 2g12 recognition . significantly , these results are the first to demonstrate that the specific arrangement of carbohydrates — rather than high carbohydrate density or a large number of copies — is responsible for good mimicry of the epitope . in certain embodiments , this work demonstrates the feasibility of using directed evolution to optimize the clustering of glycans for multivalent interaction with a target protein . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method , comprising the steps of : ( a ) combining an oligonucleotide , a first dna polymerase , and a plurality of deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates , wherein the oligonucleotide comprises a first primer binding site on the 5 ′ end , a randomized region , and a stem - loop region ; the randomized region is located between the first primer binding site and the stem - loop region ; the stem - loop region comprises a second primer binding site ; and at least one of the deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates comprises a reactive substituent ; thereby forming an extended oligonucleotide comprising an original strand and an extended strand , wherein the extended strand comprises at least one reactive substituent ; ( b ) combining a plurality of modifying compounds and the extended oligonucleotide under reaction conditions , thereby forming a modified extended oligonucleotide comprising the original strand and a modified extended strand ; and ( c ) combining a primer complementary to the second primer binding site , a second dna polymerase , the modified extended oligonucleotide , and a plurality of deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates thereby creating a duplex with the original strand and displacing the modified extended strand . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method , comprising the steps of : ( a ) combining a plurality of oligonucleotides , a first dna polymerase , and a plurality of deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates , wherein the oligonucleotides comprise a first primer binding site on the 5 ′ end , a randomized region , and a stem - loop region ; the randomized region is located between the first primer binding site and the stem - loop region ; the stem - loop region comprises a second primer binding site ; and at least one of the deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates comprises a reactive substituent ; thereby forming a plurality of extended oligonucleotides comprising an original strand and an extended strand , wherein the extended strand comprises at least one reactive substituent ; ( b ) combining a plurality of modifying compounds and the plurality of extended oligonucleotides under reaction conditions , thereby forming a plurality of modified extended oligonucleotides comprising the original strand and a modified extended strand ; and ( c ) combining a plurality of primers complementary to the second primer binding site , a second dna polymerase , the plurality of modified extended oligonucleotides , and a plurality of deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates thereby creating duplexes with the original strands and displacing the modified extended strands . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein oligonucleotide is in the form of a partial stem - loop . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the randomized region consists of about 15 - 35 , about 15 , about 20 , about 25 , about 30 , or about 35 nucleobases . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the randomized region consists of about 25 nucleobases . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the deoxyribonucleotide triphosphate comprising a reactive substituent is an unnatural deoxyribonucleotide triphosphate . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the reactive substituent is ethynyl . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the deoxyribonucleotide triphosphate comprising a reactive substituent is 5 - ethynyl - deoxyuridine triphosphate . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein no thymidine triphosphate is used in step ( a ). in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the extended oligonucleotide has a hairpin configuration . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , further comprising the step of purifying the extended oligonucleotide , thereby forming a purified extended oligonucleotide . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound comprises an azide . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound comprises an azide and a sugar moiety . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is represented by the following formula : a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties ; the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is represented by formula iii wherein a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is : the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; a monosaccharide diradical ; a disaccharide diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is represented by formula i or formula ii in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is selected from the group consisting of wherein a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the reaction conditions include copper catalysis or ruthenium catalysis . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the reaction conditions include copper catalysis . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method , comprising the steps of : isolating the modified single - stranded oligonucleotides that bind to the target protein , thereby identifying a plurality of selected oligonucleotides ; amplifying the plurality of selected oligonucleotides , thereby forming a plurality of double - stranded oligonucleotides ; and preparing from the plurality of double - stranded oligonucleotides a plurality of regenerated selected oligonucleotides . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , further comprising the step of exposing the plurality of regenerated selected oligonucleotides to the target protein . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the target protein is an antibody . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the target protein is a non - human antibody . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the target protein is the 2g12 antibody . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modification comprises a sugar moiety attached to the oligonucleotide . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modification comprises a sugar moiety attached to the oligonucleotide via a triazole moiety . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a method , comprising the steps of : ( a ) combining a plurality of oligonucleotides , a first dna polymerase , and a plurality of deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates , wherein the oligonucleotides comprise a first primer binding site on the 5 ′ end , a randomized region , and a stem - loop region ; the randomized region is located between the first primer binding site and the stem - loop region ; the stem - loop region comprises a second primer binding site ; and at least one of the deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates comprises a reactive substituent ; thereby forming a plurality of extended oligonucleotides comprising an original strand and an extended strand , wherein the extended strand comprises at least one reactive substituent ; ( b ) combining a plurality of modifying compounds and the plurality of extended oligonucleotides under reaction conditions , thereby forming a plurality of modified extended oligonucleotides comprising the original strand and a modified extended strand ; ( c ) combining a plurality of primers complementary to the second primer binding site , a second dna polymerase , the plurality of modified extended oligonucleotides , and a plurality of deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates thereby creating duplexes with the original strands , displacing the modified extended strands , and forming a plurality of modified single - stranded oligonucleotides ; ( d ) combining the plurality of modified single - stranded oligonucleotides and a target protein ; ( e ) isolating the modified single - stranded oligonucleotides that bind to the target protein , thereby identifying a plurality of selected oligonucleotides ; ( f ) amplifying the plurality of selected oligonucleotides , thereby forming a plurality of complementary oligonucleotides ; and ( g ) preparing a plurality of regenerated selected oligonucleotides from the plurality of complementary oligonucleotides . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the oligonucleotide has the form of a partial stem - loop . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the randomized region consists of about 15 - 35 , about 15 , about 20 , about 25 , about 30 , or about 35 nucleobases . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the randomized region consists of about 25 nucleobases . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the deoxyribonucleotide triphosphate comprising a reactive substituent is an unnatural deoxyribonucleotide triphosphate . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the reactive substituent is ethynyl . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the deoxyribonucleotide triphosphate comprising a reactive substituent is 5 - ethynyl - deoxyuridine triphosphate . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein no thymidine triphosphate is used in step ( a ). in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the extended oligonucleotide has a hairpin configuration . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , further comprising the step of purifying the extended oligonucleotide , thereby forming a purified extended oligonucleotide . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound comprises an azide . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound comprises an azide and a sugar moiety . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is represented by the following formula : a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties ; the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; a monosaccharide diradical ; a disaccharide diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is represented by formula iii wherein a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is represented by one of the following formulae : the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; a monosaccharide diradical ; a disaccharide diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is represented by formula i or formula ii in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the modifying compound is selected from the group consisting of wherein a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the reaction conditions include copper catalysis or ruthenium catalysis . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the reaction conditions include copper catalysis . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , further comprising the step of exposing the plurality of regenerated selected oligonucleotides to the target protein . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the target protein is an antibody . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the target protein is a non - human antibody . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned methods , wherein the target protein is the 2g12 antibody . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a compound comprising a sugar moiety and an azide . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a compound of the following formula : a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties ; the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; a monosaccharide diradical ; a disaccharide diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a compound of formula iii wherein a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned compounds , wherein the compound is represented by one of the following formulae : the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; a monosaccharide diradical ; a disaccharide diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned compounds , wherein the compound is represented by formula i or formula ii in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned compounds , wherein the compound is selected from the group consisting of wherein a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to an oligonucleotide , wherein the oligonucleotide comprises at least one non - natural deoxynucleoside ; and the non - natural deoxynucleoside comprises an oligosaccharide moiety and a triazole moiety . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to an oligonucleotide , wherein the oligonucleotide comprises at least one non - natural deoxynucleoside of the following formula : a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties ; the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; a monosaccharide diradical ; a disaccharide diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to an oligonucleotide , wherein the oligonucleotide comprises at least one non - natural deoxynucleoside of the following formula a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties ; the linker is a linear or branched c 2 - c 18 - alkanediyl ; a linear or branched c 2 - c 30 - alkanediyl optionally interrupted by one or more non - adjacent — o —, one or more — nr —, or one or more — c (═ o )—; 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; 1 , 4 - cyclohexanediyl ; 4 - methyl - 1 , 3 - cyclohexanediyl ; an aryl diradical ; a monosaccharide diradical ; a disaccharide diradical ; or a heteroaryl diradical ; any of which may be optionally substituted ; and in certain embodiments , the invention relates to an oligonucleotide , wherein the oligonucleotide comprises at least one non - natural deoxynucleoside of formula iv wherein a represents a branched or unbranched oligosaccharide consisting of about 3 to about 15 saccharide moieties . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to any one of the aforementioned oligonucleotides , consisting of 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , or 56 nucleobases . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a formulation , consisting essentially of : in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a formulation , consisting of : in certain embodiments , the immunogenic carrier helps elicit a response from the immune system of a mammal upon administration of the formulation to a mammal in need thereof . in certain embodiments , the immunogenic carrier is coupled to any one of the aforementioned compositions . in certain embodiments , the immunogenic carrier is keyhold limpet hemocyanin ( klh ). klh is one of the most widely employed carrier proteins for this purpose . klh is an effective carrier protein for several reasons . its large size and numerous epitopes generate a substantial immune response , and the abundance of lysine residues for coupling haptens allows a high hapten : carrier protein ratio , increasing the likelihood of generating hapten - specific antibodies . in addition , because klh is derived from the limpet , a gastropod , it is phylogenetically distant from mammalian proteins , thus reducing false positives in immunologically - based research techniques in mammalian model organisms . in certain embodiments , the immunogenic carrier is the outer membrane protein complex ( ompc ) of neisseria meningitidis . in certain embodiments , the formulation further comprises a t - helper epitope . in certain embodiments , the t - helper epitope is coupled to any one of the aforementioned compositions . in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a formulation , consisting essentially of : in certain embodiments , the invention relates to a formulation , consisting of : in certain embodiments , the adjuvant is any substance that acts to accelerate , prolong , or enhance antigen - specific immune responses when used in combination with any one of the aforementioned compositions . in certain embodiments , the adjuvant comprises an aluminum salt . in certain embodiments , the adjuvant comprises aluminum hydroxide or aluminum phosphate . the invention now being generally described , it will be more readily understood by reference to the following examples which are included merely for purposes of illustration of certain aspects and embodiments of the present invention , and are not intended to limit the invention . reagents were purchased from sigma - aldrich , acros organics , fluka , alfa aesar , or strem , and used without further purification unless otherwise noted . toluene , thf , and dcm were dried by passage through activated alumina columns and stored under argon gas . acetonitrile was distilled over calcium hydride . glassware was flame - dried or dried in a 150 ° c . oven . silicycle siliaflash ® p60 silica was used for column chromatography . all 1 h and 13 c nmr spectra were obtained on a varian inova 400 instrument in cdcl 3 and internally referenced to tms ; or d 2 o , internally or externally referenced to sodium 3 -( trimethylsilyl ) propanesulfonate . chemical shifts are reported in parts per million ( ppm ), and coupling constants are reported in hz . lc / ms analysis was performed on a waters acquity uplc chromatograph with a reverse phase c 18 or c 8 column , and a waters micromass z / q mass detector . optical rotation was measured using a jasco digital polarimeter . infrared spectra were obtained using a varian 640 - ir spectrometer with a znse atr . to a 50 ml flask was added 717 mg ( 1 . 22 mmol ) of starting material 1 . this was cooled to − 78 ° c . and azeotroped with toluene twice . then , 8 ml of dry dichloromethane , along with 606 mg ( 2 . 44 mmol ) of tri tert - butylpyrimidine and freshly flame - dried powdered 4 - å molecular sieves were added . this was cooled to − 78 ° c . and allowed to stir for 30 minutes . after this time , 0 . 16 ml ( 0 . 978 mmol ) of distilled triflic anhydride was added slowly . this was allowed to react for 30 minutes , then 630 mg ( 2 . 44 mmol ) of acceptor in 8 . 5 ml of dichloromethane was added dropwise . after 1 hour , the reaction was allowed to slowly warm to − 20 ° c ., and quenched with saturated aqueous nahco 3 solution , then filtered through celite . the solution was washed with 50 ml of saturated aqueous nahco 3 solution , then the aqueous phase was extracted with 3 × 50 ml ethyl acetate . the combined organic layers were dried with mgso 4 , filtered and concentrated . crude mass was 2 . 00 g . purified by flash column chromatography with 1 : 2 : 1 ----& gt ; 1 : 1 . 5 : 1 ethyl acetate / hexanes / dichloromethane . final mass was 638 mg ( 0 . 891 mmol , 91 %) based on tf 2 o ) of 1b as a white foam . 1 h nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl 3 ): δ 7 . 89 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 3 hz ), 7 . 60 - 7 . 17 ( m , 15h ), 6 . 82 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 6 hz ), 5 . 59 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 93 ( d , 1h , j = 12 . 2 hz ), 4 . 83 ( d , 1h , j = 12 . 2 hz ), 4 . 55 ( m , 4h ), 4 . 26 ( dd , 1h , j = 4 . 9 , 10 . 4 hz ), 4 . 17 ( app t , 1h ), 3 . 90 ( app t , 1h ), 3 . 79 ( s , 3h ), 3 . 79 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 59 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 53 ( dd , 1h , j = 9 . 8 hz , 3 . 1 hz ), 3 . 27 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 18 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 97 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 85 ( m , 3h ), 1 . 40 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 24 ( m , 3h ). 13 c - nmr ( 100 mhz , cdcl 3 , selected signals ): δ 29 . 5 , 31 . 0 , 51 . 7 , 55 . 4 , 67 . 7 , 68 . 7 , 72 . 1 , 74 . 7 , 75 . 6 , 76 . 1 , 77 . 7 , 78 . 6 , 100 . 2 , 101 . 5 , 113 . 8 , 126 . 2 , 127 . 0 , 127 . 7 , 128 . 2 , 128 . 3 , 128 . 8 , 129 . 0 , 129 . 3 , 130 . 4 , 132 . 8 , 137 . 7 , 138 . 5 , 141 . 1 , 159 . 2 . ir ( cm − 1 ): 3267 ( br ), 2936 , 2863 , 1610 ( s ), 1512 , 1448 , 1325 , 1246 , 1159 , 1076 . hrms ( esi +): calcd . for c 40 h 46 no 9 s + [ m + h + ] 716 . 2893 . found 716 . 2892 . to a 25 - ml round bottom flask was added 213 mg ( 5 . 32 mmol ) of 60 % wt nah powder , and this was cooled to 0 ° c . a solution of 760 mg ( 1 . 06 mmol ) of 1b in 8 . 5 ml of thf was added slowly . this was allowed to stir for 30 minutes , then 0 . 269 ml ( 3 . 19 mmol ) of methyl chloroformate was added , along with 130 mg ( 1 . 06 mmol ) of recrystallized dmap . the cooling bath was removed , and the reaction progressed for 17 hours . after this time , the flask was cooled to 0 ° c . and quenched with saturated aqueous nh 4 cl solution . the organic phase was washed with 40 ml of nh 4 cl solution , then the aqueous phase was extracted with 3 × 40 ml of dcm . the combined organic layers were dried with mgso 4 , filtered and concentrated . crude mass was about 1 g . purification by flash column chromatograph in 1 : 2 ethyl acetate / hexanes gave a final mass of 724 mg ( 0 . 936 mmol , 88 %) of 1c as a white foam . 1 h nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl 3 ): δ 7 . 92 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 6 hz ), 7 . 62 ( app t , 1h ), 7 . 57 - 7 . 44 ( m , 6h ), 7 . 40 - 7 . 27 ( m , 6h ), 7 . 20 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 5 hz ), 6 . 83 ( d , 2h , j = 8 . 6 hz ), 5 . 61 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 98 ( d , 1h , j = 12 . 8 hz ), 4 . 88 ( d , 1h , j = 12 . 2 hz ), 4 . 61 ( d , 1h , j = 12 . 2 hz ), 4 . 55 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 53 ( d , 1h , j =˜ 12 hz ), 4 . 44 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 31 ( dd , 1h , j = 10 . 4 hz , 4 . 9 hz ), 4 . 20 ( app t , 1h ), 3 . 94 ( app t , 1h ), 3 . 83 ( d , 1h , j = 2 . 7 hz ), 3 . 80 ( s , 3h ), 3 . 66 ( s , 3h ), 3 . 66 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 56 ( dd , 1h , j = 9 . 8 hz , 2 . 4 hz ), 3 . 31 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 27 ( m , 3h ), 2 . 05 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 87 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 58 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 41 ( m , 1h ). 13 c - nmr ( 100 mhz , cdcl 3 , selected signals ): δ 28 . 6 , 31 . 7 , 33 . 3 , 53 . 6 , 55 . 4 , 58 . 6 , 67 . 7 , 68 . 7 , 72 . 1 , 74 . 7 , 76 . 1 , 76 . 3 , 77 . 7 , 78 . 7 , 100 . 3 , 101 . 5 , 113 . 8 , 126 . 2 , 127 . 6 , 128 . 0 , 128 . 2 , 128 . 3 , 128 . 9 , 129 . 3 , 130 . 5 , 133 . 5 , 137 . 7 , 138 . 5 , 140 . 3 , 152 . 7 , 159 . 2 . ir ( cm − 1 ): 2939 , 2866 , 1731 , 1512 , 1449 , 1356 , 1269 , 1247 , 1169 , 1085 , 1045 , 733 , 697 . hrms ( esi +): calcd . for c 42 h 48 no 11 s + [ m + h + ] 774 . 2948 . found 774 . 2961 . to a flask containing 2 . 04 g ( 2 . 64 mmol ) of 1c was added 28 ml of dcm and 1 . 55 ml of 1 m ph 7 phosphate buffer . this was cooled to 0 ° c ., and 1 . 44 g ( 6 . 34 mmol ) of ddq was added . this was allowed to stir for 1 hour , then quenched with aqueous nahco 3 solution . this was diluted with dcm , and the organic phase was washed with 375 ml of water . the aqueous phase was extracted with 3 × 300 ml dcm , then the combined organic layers were dried with mgso 4 , filtered , and concentrated . purification by flash chromatography ( 1 : 2 ethyl acetate / hexanes ) afforded 1 . 53 g ( 2 . 34 mmol , 87 %) of 2 as an off - white foam . 1 h nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl 3 ): δ 7 . 90 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 3 hz ), 7 . 60 ( app t , 1h ) 7 . 57 - 7 . 27 ( m , 12h ), 5 . 52 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 05 ( d , 1h , j = 11 . 6 hz ), 4 . 67 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 65 ( d , 1h , j = 12 . 2 ), 4 . 43 ( m , 1h ), 4 . 29 ( dd , 1h , j = 10 . 4 hz , 4 . 9 hz ), 3 . 92 - 3 . 63 ( m , 5h ), 3 . 64 ( s , 3h ), 3 . 31 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 36 - 2 . 11 ( m , 5h ), 1 . 86 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 61 - 1 . 40 ( m , 2h ). 13 c - nmr ( 100 mhz , cdcl 3 , selected signals ): δ 28 . 5 , 31 . 7 , 33 . 4 , 53 . 6 , 58 . 5 , 67 . 2 , 68 . 7 , 70 . 9 , 75 . 8 , 76 . 4 , 78 . 9 , 79 . 4 , 100 . 3 , 102 . 1 , 126 . 4 , 120 . 0 , 128 . 1 , 128 . 4 , 128 . 5 , 128 . 6 , 128 . 9 , 129 . 2 , 133 . 5 , 137 . 3 , 138 . 2 , 140 . 3 , 152 . 6 . ir ( cm − 1 ): 3528 ( br ), 2949 , 2872 , 1733 , 1449 , 1358 , 1272 , 1171 , 1090 , 751 , 700 . hrms ( esi +): calcd . for c 34 h 40 no 10 s + [ m + h + ] 654 . 2373 . found 654 . 2366 . 210 mg ( 0 . 333 mmol ) of 2 and 700 mg of 3 ( 0 . 500 mmol ) in a 25 ml flask were dissolved in toluene and cooled to − 78 ° c . vacuum was applied and the cooling bath was removed and allowed to warm to room temperature as the toluene evaporated . this procedure was repeated twice . the residue was redissolved in 12 ml of acetonitrile , and freshly flame - dried 4 - å molecular sieves were added , and this was allowed to stir for 1 hour . the flask was then wrapped in foil , cooled to 0 ° c ., and 525 mg ( 0 . 799 mmol ) sinaÿ reagent ( p - brc 6 h 4 ) 3 n + sbcl 6 − , was added . this was allowed to react at 0 ° c . for 30 minutes , then at room temperature for 30 minutes . after this time , 1 ml triethylamine was added , and the reaction was filtered through celite and concentrated in vacuo . the crude residue was purified by flash chromatography with 1 : 3 . 5 : 1 ethyl acetate / hexanes / dcm to give 440 mg ( 0 . 230 mmol , 69 %) 4 as a white foam . 1 h nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl 3 ): δ 7 . 92 ( d , 2h , j = 6 . 4 hz ), 7 . 62 ( t , 1h ), 7 . 53 ( app t , 2h ), 7 . 43 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 3 hz ), 7 . 39 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 0 hz ), 7 . 37 - 6 . 96 ( m , 50h + residual chcl 3 ), 6 . 93 ( app t , 1h ), 5 . 53 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 40 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 34 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 24 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 98 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 9 - 3 . 6 ( complex region ), 3 . 66 ( s , 3h ), 3 . 60 - 3 . 40 ( m , 4h ), 3 . 33 ( br d , 1h , j = 11 . 0 ), 3 . 13 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 24 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 12 , ( s , 3h ), 1 . 84 ( m , 3h ), 1 . 51 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 26 ( m , 1h + grease ). 13 c - nmr ( 100 mhz , cdcl 3 , selected signals ): δ 28 . 5 , 33 . 2 , 53 . 5 , 58 . 5 , 67 . 3 , 94 . 4 , 99 . 6 , 99 . 9 , 100 . 0 , 101 . 2 , 126 . 0 , 133 . 5 , 133 . 5 , 137 . 3 , 138 . 2 , 138 . 5 . ir ( cm − 1 ): 3029 , 2863 , 1735 , 1452 , 1360 , 1085 , 1055 , 736 , 697 . hrms ( esi +): calcd . for c 117 h 126 no 26 s + [ m + h + ] 1992 . 8289 . found 1992 . 8224 . 100 mg ( 0 . 050 mmol ) 4 was dissolved in 12 ml anhydrous methanol and 0 . 500 ml ( 2 . 00 mmol ) of 25 % wt naome solution in methanol was added . after 3 hours , amberlite ir - 120 h + ion exchange resin was added until the solution was neutral ( note : avoid acidifying beyond ph 4 ). the mixture was filtered through celite ® and concentrated to give 97 mg crude material . purification by flash chromatography in 40 % ethyl acetate / hexanes gave 87 . 6 mg ( 0 . 0463 mmol , 93 %) product 4b as a white foam . 1 h nmr ( 400 mhz , cdcl 3 ): δ 7 . 89 ( d , 2h , j = 8 hz ), 7 . 60 ( app t , 1h ), 7 . 55 ( m , 2h ), 7 . 43 ( d , 2h , j = 7 . 9 hz ) 7 . 40 - 7 . 07 ( m , 52h + residual chcl 3 ), 6 . 92 ( app t , 1h ) 5 . 41 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 33 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 26 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 05 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 82 - 3 . 20 ( complex region ), 3 . 13 ( m , 2h ), 2 . 34 ( s , 1h ), 1 . 91 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 82 ( m , 2h ), 1 . 67 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 40 ( m , 1h ), 1 . 2 - 1 . 1 ( m , 3h ). 13 c - nmr ( 100 mhz , cdcl 3 , selected signals ): δ 31 . 1 , 51 . 7 , 67 . 4 , 68 . 6 , 69 . 2 , 71 . 4 , 72 . 2 , 72 . 4 , 73 . 3 , 80 . 3 , 99 . 9 , 101 . 3 , 126 . 0 , 127 . 0 , 127 . 2 , 127 . 5 , 127 . 7 , 127 . 8 , 127 . 9 , 128 . 0 , 128 . 1 , 128 . 2 , 128 . 3 , 128 . 4 , 128 . 5 , 128 . 6 , 129 . 3 , 132 . 8 , 138 . 2 , 138 . 6 . ir ( cm − 1 ): 3460 ( br ) 3261 ( br ) 3063 , 3027 , 2920 , 2862 , 1453 , 1362 , 1073 , 1055 , 737 , 697 . hrms ( esi +): calcd . for c 113 h 121 no 23 s + [ m + h + ] 1892 . 8128 . found 1892 . 8042 . along with a stream of n 2 , ammonia gas was condensed against a − 78 ° c . cold finger into a − 78 ° c .- cooled 500 ml 3 - necked flask until ˜ 200 ml had accumulated . 320 mg ( 13 . 8 mmol ) na 0 was then added , and the resulting blue solution was monitored for 1 hour to ensure that color did not disappear . 131 mg ( 0 . 0691 mmol ) 4b in 3 ml thf was then added , and this was allowed to react at − 78 ° c . for 2 hours . 1 . 11 g ( 20 . 7 mmol ) of solid nh 4 cl was added portionwise , the cooling bath was removed , and the ammonia was blown off under a stream of nitrogen . the crude product was dissolved in minimal water and desalted by passage through a biogel p - 2 size exclusion gel column to give 51 . 8 mg ( 0 . 0678 mmol , 98 %) compound 4c as a brittle colorless glass . 1 h nmr ( 400 mhz , d 2 o ): δ 5 . 35 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 30 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 04 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 81 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 15 - 3 . 60 ( m , 24h ), 3 . 39 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 19 ( m , 1h ), 2 . 20 - 2 . 03 ( m , 4h ), 1 . 5 - 1 . 3 ( m , 4h ). 13 c - nmr ( 100 mhz , cdcl 3 , selected signals ): δ 30 . 9 , 31 . 0 , 31 . 9 , 33 . 2 , 52 . 0 , 63 . 8 , 69 . 0 , 69 . 7 , 69 . 8 , 72 . 8 , 73 . 2 , 73 . 6 , 76 . 1 , 76 . 2 , 78 . 8 , 81 . 4 , 83 . 5 , 100 . 7 , 103 . 5 , 105 . 1 . ir ( cm − 1 ): 3300 ( v br ), 2925 , 1739 , 1629 , 1448 , 1363 , 1030 . hrms ( esi +): calcd . for c 30 h 54 no 21 + [ m + h + ] 764 . 3188 . found 764 . 3184 . 15 . 2 mg ( 0 . 234 mmol ) sodium azide was suspended in a vial in 50 μl each of dcm and water . this was cooled to 0 ° c ., and 20 μl , ( 0 . 117 mmol ) of triflic anhydride was added . after 2 hours , this was quenched with aqueous nahco 3 solution , and the aqueous layer was extracted twice with dcm . the combined organic layers containing triflyl azide were reduced to ˜ 0 . 1 ml under vacuum . into a 5 ml flask containing 9 mg ( 0 . 0117 mmol ) of 4c was added 125 μl water and 57 μl of 0 . 02 m aqueous cuso 4 solution ( 0 . 0011 mmol ). the triflyl azide solution ( prepared above ) was then added , followed by 0 . 5 ml of methanol . after 2 . 5 hours , the reaction was quenched with 10 mg ( 10 eq ) solid nahco 3 and concentrated in vacuo . the crude material was desalted on a biogel p - 2 size exclusion gel column , and then purified by hplc ( gradient shown in fig2 ). product was detected by uv at 220 nm and eluted at ˜ 18 minutes . concentration of fractions afforded 6 . 6 mg ( 0 . 00842 mmol , 72 %) of man 4 - azide ( 5 ), a colorless glass . 1 h nmr ( 400 mhz , d 2 o ): δ 5 . 36 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 31 ( s , 1h ), 5 . 05 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 80 ( s , 1h ), 4 . 10 - 3 . 62 ( m , 25h ), 3 . 53 - 3 . 47 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 42 - 3 . 38 ( m , 1h ), 3 . 34 ( s residual meoh ), 2 . 1 - 1 . 95 ( m , 4h ), 1 . 5 - 1 . 3 ( m , 4h ). 13 c - nmr ( 100 mhz , d 2 o , selected signals ): δ 31 . 1 , 31 . 2 , 31 . 5 , 32 . 9 , 61 . 7 , 63 . 8 , 63 . 9 , 69 . 0 , 69 . 7 , 69 . 8 , 72 . 8 , 73 . 2 , 73 . 7 , 76 . 1 , 76 . 2 , 78 . 9 , 79 . 0 , 81 . 4 , 81 . 6 , 83 . 5 , 100 . 6 , 103 . 5 , 105 . 1 . ir ( cm − 1 ): 3344 , 2933 , 2096 , 1629 , 1367 , 1124 , 1055 . hrms ( esi +): calcd . for c 40 h 52 n 3 o 21 + [ m + h + ] 790 . 3093 . found 790 . 3087 the original oligonucleotide library , pcr primers and the library regeneration primer were purchased from integrated dna technologies . a complete list of primers is in fig1 . vent polymerase , vent ( exo ) polymerase , bst polymerase , t4 polynucleotide kinase , exonuclease i , taq polymerase and streptavidin magnetic beads were purchased from new england biolabs . centrisep desalting columns were purchased from princeton separations . sephadex g - 50 superfine resin was purchased from ge healthcare . antibody 2g12 was purchased from immune technology corp . protein a dynabeads and a topo - ta cloning kit were purchased from invitrogen . atp ( γ - 32 p ) was purchased from perkin elmer . synthetic oligos were purchased from integrated dna technologies of ella biotech . the original oligonucleotide library consists of a stem - loop region connected to a typical aptamer library — a randomized portion flanked by primer regions for aptamerfor and aptamerrev ( fig1 ). in a pcr tube , 40 pmol of library , 2 . 5 μl 10 × thermopol buffer ( new england biolabs ), and 17 μl autoclaved h 2 o were combined , after which the temperature was raised to 95 ° c . for 15 seconds and allowed to cool to room temperature . then , a 0 . 5 μl of a solution containing 10 mm deoxyadenosine triphosphate , 10 mm deoxycytosine triphosphate , 10 mm deoxyguanosine triphosphate , and 10 mm alkyne - containing thymidine triphosphate analogue 5 - ethynyl - deoxyuridine ( edu ) triphosphate ( synthesis in example 19 ) was added to afford a final concentration of 200 μm each . 8 u of bst polymerase ( large fragment ) was added to the reaction , yielding a final reaction volume of 25 μl . the reaction was mixed and incubated at 60 ° c . for 2 minutes . the reaction was diluted to 50 μl with h 2 o and transferred to a cap - less 0 . 5 ml microcentrifuge tube . 5 μl of 10 mm tris ( 3 - hydroxypropyl - 4 - triazolylmethyl ) amine ( thpta ), 2 μl of 25 mm cuso 4 , and 5 μl of 35 mm mannose sugar - azide was added and the solution was mixed by pipetting . then , 2 μl of freshly dissolved 250 mm sodium ascorbate was added followed by immediate mixing by pipetting . the microcentrifuge tube was quickly placed in a 5 ml round bottom flask and a rubber septum used to seal the tube , and argon was flushed into the flask for 5 minutes . the reaction was allowed to proceed for 2 hours . the modified dna was then desalted twice through centrisep desalting columns containing sephadex g - 50 superfine resin . note : following the addition of sodium ascorbate , it is important to flush with argon as quickly as possible to minimize damage to the dna . to the desalted reaction product , thermopol buffer ( 1 × final concentration ), aptamerfor primer ( 50 pmol ), dntps ( 200 μm each final concentration ), 8 u of bst polymerase ( large fragment ) and h 2 o were added to a final volume of 50 μl . the reaction was incubated at 65 ° c . for 5 minutes followed immediately by buffer exchanging through a centrisep column loaded with sephadex g - 50 / binding buffer ( 20 mm tris ph 7 . 5 , 100 mm nacl , 2 mm mgso 4 ). then , binding buffer plus 0 . 02 % tween - 20 was added to a final volume of 50 μl and the solution was heated to 75 ° c . for 3 minutes and allowed to cool to room temperature . note : it is important to keep the mixture on ice prior to incubation at 65 ° c . to avoid unwanted side reactions . after strand displacement , it is important to quickly buffer exchange the reaction to remove dntps thus minimizing unwanted side reactions . at each desalting / buffer exchange step , the overall volume decreases . this is exacerbated by the inclusion of detergent ( triton x - 100 ) in the polymerase buffer . the state of the library at each stage of a selma cycle was monitored by acrylamide gel analysis ( fig1 ). after polymerase extension in the presence of datp , dctp , dgtp and edutp , the alkyne - containing library had a duplex hairpin structure and ran ( lane 2 and fig1 b ) as a narrow , strongly - staining band with much less mobility than simple dsdnas of similar length . treatment of the library with man 4 - azide under cuaaac conditions resulted in a more diffuse band with a still higher apparent molecular weight ( lane 3 and fig1 c ). primer 2 ( see fig1 a ) was then added , together with natural dntp &# 39 ; s and polymerase extension resulted in the strand - displaced library ( lane 5 and fig1 d ). several observations and control experiments were consistent with the assumed ssdna - dsdna hybrid structure of the library at this stage . first , it ran as a smear in the gel and importantly , treatment with exonuclease i ( which digests the 3 ′- terminal ssdna portion ) resulted in the appearance of a sharp 80 - bp band corresponding to the dsdna portion ( lane 6 ). by contrast , the glycosylated double stranded hairpins showed no change upon exonuclease treatment ( lanes 3 vs . 4 ). heating the hybrid to 95 ° c . ( but not 75 ° c .) destabilized the duplex portion of the hybrid structure , allowing the glycosylated strand to reinvade , expel the unglycosylated single strand and return to the duplex hairpin structure , which is impervious to the exonuclease ( compare lanes 4 , 7 and 8 ). 2g12 antibody was added to a final concentration of 50 nm and the solution was incubated at room temperature for 1 hr . then , the mixture was added to 1 . 5 mg protein a dynabeads and incubated for 45 minutes with rotation . the mixture was applied to a magnetic separator and the supernatant was removed by pipetting . then , the mixture was washed with 100 μl , 150 μl , and 200 μl of binding buffer / 0 . 02 % tween - 20 . following washing , the beads were then resuspended in 30 μl elution buffer ( 20 mm tris ph 8 , 100 mm nacl , 0 . 02 % tween - 20 ) and placed in a boiling water bath for 2 minutes . the beads were immediately applied to a magnetic separator and the supernatant placed in a pcr tube . thermopol buffer ( 1 × final conc . ), 60 pmol aptamerfor - biotin and 60 pmol aptamerrev , dntps ( 200 μm final cone . ), 4 u vent ( exo ) polymerase and h 2 o were added to a final volume of 200 μl . the reaction was separated into 3 tubes and cycled at : note : cycle number was empirically determined by removing the pcr tubes at varying cycle numbers ( 8 - 12 ) and running a portion ( 5 μl ) of the reaction product on an agarose gel . subsequently , all tubes are brought up to the optimal cycle number . it is important to avoid excessive cycling as this can lead to unwanted side reactions . 30 u exonuclease i was added followed by incubation at 37 ° c . for 30 minutes and inactivation at 80 ° c . for 20 minutes to remove excess primer from the previous pcr reaction . 4 m nacl was added to a final concentration of 500 mm and edta was added to a final concentration of 5 mm . the pcr product was then incubated with streptavidin magnetic beads for 30 minutes with intermittent mixing . the beads were washed twice with wash buffer ( 20 mm tris ph 8 . 0 , 500 mm nacl ) followed by the addition of 40 μl 100 mm naoh for 4 minutes to elute the unbiotinylated strand . a magnetic rack was used to pellet the beads and the supernatant was immediately mixed with 4 μl of 1 m hcl and the solution was desalted through a centrisep column loaded with sephadex g - 50 . thermopol buffer ( 1 × final concentration ), library regeneration primer ( 40 pmol ), dntps ( 200 μm each final concentration ), 2 u of vent polymerase and h 2 o were added to a final volume of 100 μl . the reaction was heated at 64 ° c . for 30 seconds followed by 2 minutes at 72 ° c . 30 u of exonuclease i was added and the reaction was incubated at 37 ° c . for 30 minutes followed by 20 minutes at 80 ° c . 4 m nacl was added to a final concentration of 500 mm and edta was added to a final concentration of 5 mm . the product was then incubated with streptavidin magnetic beads for 30 minutes with intermittent mixing . the beads were washed twice with wash buffer ( 20 mm tris ph 8 . 0 , 500 mm nacl ) followed by the addition of 40 μl 100 mm naoh for 4 minutes to elute the unbiotinylated strand . a magnetic rack was used to pellet the beads and the supernatant was immediately mixed with 4 μl , of 1 m hcl followed by 1 μl of 1 m tris ph 8 . 10 μl of the 45 μl recovered from the library regeneration step were used in each subsequent round of library generation / selection . 4 u of bst polymerase was added instead of 8 u in both steps using this enzyme . 10 pmol aptamerfor was used for the strand displacement reaction . 50 nm antibody 2g12 were used in rounds 1 and 2 , 10 nm antibody in rounds 3 and 4 , and 5 nm antibody in rounds 5 , 6 , and 7 . in rounds 2 , 4 , and 6 , the library was counterselected against protein a magnetic beads by incubation with 0 . 75 mg beads for 30 minutes and using the supernatant to select for antibody 2g12 binding . after 7 rounds of library generation / selection and amplification of the selected mannose - dna from round 7 , 2 μl of the amplification pcr product was used in a 100 μl amplification reaction using vent ( exo ) polymerase according to the same parameters as used previously , except primer aptamerfor was used instead of primer aptamerfor - biotin . 5 u taq polymerase was added to the pcr product and the reaction was incubated for 30 minutes at 72 ° c . to ensure optimal incorporation of overhanging adenosine nucleotides at the 3 ′ ends of both strands . a topo ta cloning kit was then used to clone the library according to manufacturer &# 39 ; s instructions , using blue - white colony screening to identify positive clones . 20 white colonies were picked into lb broth and the plasmid isolated and sequenced . clones were amplified using vent ( exo ) polymerase in 100 μl reactions and 20 pmol each of primers hairpinfor and aptamerrev - biotin and the conditions / thermal cycling used previously for library amplification . in these reactions , deoxythymidine triphosphate was replaced by 5 ′ ethynyl - deoxyuridine triphosphate . the non - biotinylated strand was isolated using streptavidin magnetic beads as described , and 1 μl of 1 m tris ph 8 was added to the isolated strand . 10 μl isolated single - stranded dna was used in a 25 μl reaction containing 1 × thermopol buffer , 200 μm dntps , 15 pmol aptamerrev - biotin , and 0 . 5 u vent polymerase . the reaction was incubated at 64 ° c . for 30 seconds followed by 72 ° c . for 2 minutes . then , 10 u exonuclease i was added and the reaction was incubated at 37 ° c . for 30 minutes followed by inactivation at 80 ° c . for 20 minutes . the reaction was transferred to a cap - less 0 . 5 ml microcentrifuge tube . added to the reaction was 2 . 5 μl 10 mm thpta ligand , 1 μl 25 mm cuso 4 , 2 . 5 μl of 35 mm mannose sugar - azide , and the reaction was mixed by pipetting . then , 1 μl of fresh 250 mm sodium ascorbate was added followed by immediate mixing by pipetting . the microcentrifuge tube was quickly placed in a 5 ml round bottom flask and a rubber septum used to seal the tube , and argon was flushed into the flask for 5 minutes . the reaction was allowed to proceed for 2 hours . then , 25 μl h 2 o was added and the reaction was immediately desalted twice through centrisep desalting columns containing sephadex g - 50 superfine resin . the desalted modified dna was then radioactively phosphorylated using polynucleotide kinase and atp ( γ - 32 p ) according to manufacturer &# 39 ; s instructions . the non - biotinylated , radiolabeled strand was then isolated using streptavidin magnetic beads as described , however four washes were performed to extensively remove unincorporated 32 p . 1 μl of 1 m tris ph 8 was added and the resulting modified , labeled dna was stored on ice or at 4 ° c . 2 . 5 μl of modified , radiolabeled dna was added to 50 μl binding buffer / 0 . 02 % tween - 20 . the solution was heated to 75 ° c . for 3 minutes and allowed to cool to room temperature . then , the desired amount of antibody 2g12 was added to the solution and binding allowed for 3 hours at room temperature . the solution was then filtered through a nitrocellulose / pvdf sandwich and the radioactivity in each membrane quantified by exposure to a phosphor screen followed by phosphor imaging . note : nitrocellulose was exposed to 0 . 4 m naoh for 10 minutes , washed extensively with h 2 o , and then soaked in binding buffer prior to the filter binding assay . pvdf was soaked in methanol prior to extensive washing with h 2 o and soaking in binding buffer prior to the filter binding assay . the results after 7 iterative rounds of selection / amplification are shown in fig6 . the data show that the process enriched the pool of glyco - dnas in the library that bound to 2g12 . the best binders in the library were then cloned and sequenced , and were found to show binding at the ˜ 200 - 300 nm level . the minimal portion of the glyco - dna clones &# 39 ; sequences necessary for binding to 2g12 will be determined . this will be accomplished through synthesis and binding evaluation of partial - sequence fragments . several milligrams of glyco - dna will be synthesized . this amount should be sufficient for immunogenicity studies as both unmodified glyco - dna and phosphorothio - glyco - dna . rabbit sera will be monitored for binding to 1 ) individual man 4 carbohydrates , 2 ) the glyco - dna immunogens , and 3 ) hiv gp120 , as well as hiv neutralization activity . if antibodies that bind the carbohydrates or gp120 are elicited , characterization of the antibody response and / or further immunogenicity studies of the antigens in non - human primates will follow . all synthetic mutant clones were truncated to remove the loop portion of the sequence ( 24 italicized residues in clone sequences in fig1 ). in a pcr tube , 40 pmol of (−)- strand synthetic oligo complementary to a sequence in fig1 , 2 . 5 μl 10 × thermopol buffer ( new england biolabs ), 15 μl autoclaved h 2 o , and 2 μl 25 μm primer were combined . to this was added 0 . 5 μl of a solution containing 10 mm deoxyadenosine triphosphate , 10 mm deoxycytosine triphosphate , 10 mm deoxyguanosine triphosphate , and 10 mm alkyne - containing thymidine triphosphate analogue 5 - ethynyl - deoxyuridine ( edu ) triphosphate to afford a final concentration of 200 μm each . 8 u of bst polymerase ( large fragment ) was added and the mixture was incubated at 60 ° c . for 2 minutes to complete synthesis of the duplex . the reaction was diluted with 25 μl of autoclaved h 2 o to a final volume of 50 μl . for entry 21 of fig1 , a synthetic (+)- sense strand containing the desired sequence was simply annealed to the (−)- sense strand to produce a similar duplex structure . the reaction was transferred into a 0 . 5 ml microcentrifuge tube containing 5 . 0 μl 10 mm thpta ligand and 2 . 0 μl 25 mm cuso 4 . 5 . 0 μl of 35 mm mannose sugar - azide was added and the reaction was mixed by pipetting . then , 2 μl of fresh 250 mm sodium ascorbate was added followed by immediate mixing by pipetting . the microcentrifuge tube was quickly placed in a 5 ml round bottom flask and a rubber septum used to seal the tube , and argon was flushed into the flask for 5 minutes . the reaction was allowed to proceed for 2 hours under argon . the modified dna was then desalted twice through centrisep desalting columns containing sephadex g - 50 superfine resin . 24 . 5 μl of the desalted modified dna was added to a pcr tube containing 1 ul 100 mm freshly prepared dithiothreitol ( dtt ) and 3 . 0 μl t4 polynucleotide kinase reaction buffer ( 10 ×). to the reaction was added 0 . 5 - 1 . 0 μl atp ( γ - 32 p - perkin elmer ), followed by 10 u t4 polynucleotide kinase ( new england biolabs ). the reaction was incubated at 37 ° c . for 2 hours and then the labeled product was incubated with streptavidin magnetic beads for 30 minutes at rt with rotation . the beads were washed four times with 150 μl wash buffer ( 20 mm tris ph 8 . 0 , 500 mm nacl ) followed by the addition of 40 μl 100 mm naoh for 4 minutes to elute the unbiotinylated strand . the supernatant was immediately mixed with 4 μl of 1 m hcl followed by 1 μl of 1 m tris ph 8 . these labeled ssdna were then directly used in the labeling procedures as described in the filter binding section ( example 12 ). the page ( fig2 a ) ( 20 % acrylamide , 29 : 1 acrylamide : bis - acrylamide , etbr staining ) shows the progress of the click glycosylation of clone 6 at several timepoints over two hours . roughly 10 - 11 bands can be seen in the gel ( corresponding to starting oligo and one - through ten - fold - glycosylated species ). the identity of the 3 major bands after 2 hrs was confirmed to be the 8 , 9 , and 10 - clicked species by rp - hplc / esi - ms analysis ( fig2 b ) ( analysis by novatia , inc ., 2 × 50 mm ace c18 300 column , 60 ° c ., 0 . 4 ml / min , 5 - 20 % b over 19 min ). see also fig2 . all commercial reagents ( sigma - aldrich , alfa aesar ) were used as provided unless otherwise indicated . an anhydrous solvent dispensing system ( j . c . meyer ) using 2 packed columns of neutral alumina was used for drying thf , et 2 o , and ch 2 cl 2 , while 2 packed columns of molecular sieves were used to dry dmf . solvents were dispensed under argon . analytical hplc was performed on a varian microsorb column ( c18 , 5μ , 4 . 6 × 250 mm ) with a flow rate of 0 . 5 ml / min while a varian dynamax column ( c18 , 8μ , 41 . 4 × 250 mm ) with a flow rate of 40 ml / min was used for preparative hplc . an isocratic or linear gradient of 0 . 1 m triethylammonium bicarbonate ( teab ) and aqueous mecn ( 70 %) were used . teledyne isco combiflash rf equipped with teledyne isco redisep rf flash column silica cartridges ( www . isco . com / combiflash ) were used for flash chromatography with the indicated solvent system . nuclear magnetic resonance spectra were recorded on a varian 600 mhz with me 4 si , dds or signals from residual solvent as the internal standard for 1 h and external h 3 po 4 for 31 p . chemical shifts are reported in ppm , and signals are described as s ( singlet ), d ( doublet ), t ( triplet ), q ( quartet ), m ( multiplet ), brs ( broad singlet ), and dd ( double doublet ). values given for coupling constants are first order . high resolution mass spectra were recorded on an agilent tof ii tof / ms instrument equipped with either an esi or apci interface . all reactions were performed under an inert atmosphere of dry ar in oven dried ( 150 ° c .) glassware . 5 - iodo - 2 ′- deoxyuridine ( 5 , 1 . 0 g , 2 . 82 mmol ) was dissolved in mecn / et 3 n ( 66 ml of 1 : 1 , v / v ) under argon atmosphere . trimethylsilylacetylene ( 1 . 6 ml , 11 . 3 mmol ), bis -( triphenylphosphine )- palladium ( ii ) chloride ( 42 . 2 mg , 0 . 60 mmol ), and cui ( 28 mg , 0 . 15 mmol ) were added , and the mixture was heated for 3 . 5 h in the flask immersed into a preheated oil bath ( 50 ° c .). the solvents were removed in vacuo to give a residue that was purified by silica gel flash column chromatography . elution with chcl 3 / meoh ( 9 : 1 , v / v ) afforded trimethylsilyl intermediate as a solid ( 0 . 75 g , 82 %). to the solution of this intermediate ( 0 . 7 g , 2 . 16 mmol ) in anhydrous meoh ( 16 ml ) under argon atmosphere , a solution of naome in meoh ( 145 ml of 0 . 05 n ) was added , and the reaction was stirred at 25 ° c . for 2 h . the ph of the solution was adjusted to 5 - 6 using dowex 50 wx8 - 200 ( h + ), the mixture was filtered , and concentrated in vacuo to give a residue that was purified by silica gel column flash chromatography using chcl 3 / meoh ( 8 : 2 , v / v ) as eluent to yield 5 - ethynyl - 2 ′- deoxyuridine ( edu ) as a white solid ( 395 mg , 73 %); 1 h nmr ( dmso - d 6 ) δ 11 . 62 ( s , 1h , nh ), 8 . 29 ( s , 1h , h - 6 ), 6 . 10 ( dd , j = 6 . 56 , 6 . 56 hz , 1h , h - 1 ′), 5 . 24 ( d , j = 4 . 31 hz , 1h , c - 3 ′ oh ), 5 . 12 ( t , j = 4 . 91 hz , 1h , c - 5 ′ oh ), 4 . 23 ( m , 1h , h - 3 ′), 4 . 10 ( s , 1h , c ≡ ch ), 3 . 79 ( q , j = 3 . 25 , 3 . 25 , 3 . 26 hz , 1h , h - 4 ′), 3 . 59 ( m , 2h , h - 5 ′, h - 5 ″), 2 . 16 ( m , 2h , h - 2 ′, h - 2 ″). hrms calcd for c 11 h 11 n 2 o 14 251 . 0673 ( m − h ) − . found 251 . 0683 . edu was dried by coevaporation with dry pyridine , and left over p 2 o 5 under vacuo overnight . the compound ( 75 mg , 0 . 3 mmol ) was dissolved in solution of trimethylphosphate ( 2 ml ), cooled in ice - bath , and a powdered proton sponge ( 96 . 4 mg , 0 . 45 mmol ) was added followed by pocl 3 ( 30 μl , 0 . 33 mmol ). after 2 h of stirring , a solution of tributylammonium pyrophosphate in dmf ( 3 ml , 1 . 5 mmol ) containing tributylamine ( 300 μl , 1 . 26 mmol ) was quickly added to the reaction mixture . after 2 min of stirring mixture was poured into 30 ml of 0 . 2 m teab , stirred and evaporated to dryness . proton - sponge was removed on small column with dowex 50 wx8 - 200 ( na + ). the crude product was then purified by preparative hplc with 70 % mecn / 0 . 1m teab ( 2 - 10 linear gradient ) to give a residue which was dissolved in water , and passed through a small column of dowex 50 wx8 - 200 ( na + ). fractions containing product were combined and lyophilized to give the product as a white powder ( 46 . 5 mg , 28 %). 1 h nmr ( d 2 o ) δ 8 . 02 ( s , 1h , h - 6 ), 6 . 76 ( t , j = 6 . 59 hz , 1h , h - 1 ′), 4 . 44 ( m , 1h , h - 3 ′), 4 . 00 ( m , 3h , h - 4 ′, h - 5 ′, h - 5 ′), 3 . 39 ( s , 1h , c ≡ ch ), 2 . 12 ( m , 2h , h - 2 ′, h - 2 ″). 31 p nmr ( 243 mhz , d 2 o ) δ ppm − 8 . 94 ( d , j = 20 . 38 hz ), − 10 . 49 ( d , j = 20 . 19 hz ), − 22 . 16 ( t , j = 20 . 17 hz ). hrms calcd for c 11 h 14 n 2 o 14 p 3 490 . 9663 ( m − h ) − . found 490 . 9673 . all of the u . s . patents and u . s . published patent applications cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference . those skilled in the art will recognize , or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation , many equivalents to the specific embodiments of the invention described herein . such equivalents are intended to be encompassed by the following claims .
described herein are oligosaccharide - oligonucleotide conjugates useful as vaccines against one or more human or veterinary therapeutic indications , and methods of synthesizing and identifying them . the conjugates may be identified using non - human antibodies as binding targets , thereby expanding the power and scope of the invention . efficacious conjugates may be identified through an iterative .