--- title: "Getting Started with glyparse" output: rmarkdown::html_vignette vignette: > %\VignetteIndexEntry{Getting Started with glyparse} %\VignetteEngine{knitr::rmarkdown} %\VignetteEncoding{UTF-8} --- ```{r, include = FALSE} knitr::opts_chunk$set( collapse = TRUE, comment = "#>", error = FALSE ) ``` ## Parsing glycan text Glycan structures appear in several text formats. If you work with data from different sources, you may find that each database, software tool, or research group uses its own conventions for representing structures as text. `glyparse` provides a parser for each supported format and converts the results to a common `glyrepr::glycan_structure` representation. This gives you a consistent starting point for structure comparison and downstream analysis, without rewriting every input by hand. All public parsers return `glyrepr::glycan_structure` objects. If you are unfamiliar with `glyrepr`, see the [`glyrepr` vignette](https://glycoverse.github.io/glyrepr/articles/glyrepr.html). ```{r setup} library(glyparse) ``` ## Supported formats Here is a quick overview of the formats supported by the package: | Format | Parser | Common sources | |--------|---------|-------------------| | **IUPAC-condensed** | `parse_iupac_condensed()` | Literature, UniCarbKB | | **IUPAC-short** | `parse_iupac_short()` | Literature, UniCarbKB | | **IUPAC-extended** | `parse_iupac_extended()` | Literature, UniCarbKB | | **IUPAC-compact** | `parse_iupac_compact()` | Compact database and literature notation | | **GlyCAM IUPAC** | `parse_glycam_iupac()` | GlyCAM workflows | | **GlycoCT** | `parse_glycoct()` | Literature, GlycomeDB | | **WURCS** | `parse_wurcs()` | Literature, GlyTouCan | | **Linear Code** | `parse_linear_code()` | Literature | | **LINUCS** | `parse_linucs()` | Glycan structure software | | **KCF** | `parse_kcf()` | KEGG GLYCAN | | **GlycoWorkbench** | `parse_gwb()` | GlycoWorkbench and GWS files | | **pGlyco** | `parse_pglyco_struc()` | pGlyco software results | | **StrucGP** | `parse_strucgp_struc()` | StrucGP software results | The package includes an automatic parser and 13 format-specific parsers. Each parser accepts a character vector of structure strings and returns a `glyrepr::glycan_structure` object. ## Part 1: Automatic parsing When the input format is not known in advance, use `auto_parse()`. It detects the format one element at a time, so a vector can contain mixed formats. ```{r} x <- c( "Gal(b1-3)GalNAc(b1-", "(N(F)(N(H(H(N))(H(N(H))))))", "WURCS=2.0/3,3,2/[a2122h-1b_1-5][a1122h-1b_1-5][a1122h-1a_1-5]/1-2-3/a4-b1_b3-c1" ) auto_parse(x) ``` ## Part 2: IUPAC notation ### IUPAC-condensed This format is widely used in scientific literature and databases like UniCarbKB. For more detail about this notation, see the [`glyrepr` IUPAC vignette](https://glycoverse.github.io/glyrepr/articles/iupac.html). ```{r} # Single structure iupac_condensed <- "Neu5Ac(a2-3)Gal(b1-4)[Fuc(a1-3)]GlcNAc(b1-4)Gal(b1-4)Glc(a1-" parse_iupac_condensed(iupac_condensed) ``` ```{r} # Multiple structures at once glycans <- c( "Man(a1-3)[Man(a1-6)]Man(b1-4)GlcNAc(b1-4)GlcNAc(b1-", # N-glycan core "Gal(b1-3)GalNAc(b1-", # O-glycan core 1 "Neu5Ac(a2-3)Gal(b1-3)[GlcNAc(b1-6)]GalNAc(b1-" # O-glycan core 2 ) parse_iupac_condensed(glycans) ``` ### IUPAC-short This compact format is popular in research papers because it saves space: ```{r} # The same structures in short format iupac_short <- c( "Mana3(Mana6)Manb4GlcNAcb4GlcNAcb-", "Galb3GalNAcb-", "Neu5Aca3Galb3(GlcNAcb6)GalNAcb-" ) parse_iupac_short(iupac_short) ``` The parser infers common linkage positions when they are omitted. ### IUPAC-extended This verbose format includes full chemical names and stereochemistry: ```{r} iupac_extended <- paste0( "alpha-D-Galp-(1->3)-", "beta-D-Galp-(1->" ) parse_iupac_extended(iupac_extended) ``` ### IUPAC-compact IUPAC-compact notation places the linkage immediately after each residue and uses parentheses for branches. ```{r} iupac_compact <- "Mana1-3(Mana1-6)Manb1-4GlcNAcb" parse_iupac_compact(iupac_compact) ``` ### GlyCAM IUPAC GlyCAM IUPAC strings include configuration and ring markers such as `DManp` and use a terminal `-OH` marker for the reducing end. The parser normalizes these strings before parsing them. ```{r} glycam <- "DManpa1-3[DManpa1-6]DManpb1-4DGlcpNAcb1-OH" parse_glycam_iupac(glycam) ``` ## Part 3: Database and exchange formats ### GlycoCT GlycoCT uses separate `RES` and `LIN` sections. It is verbose, but records residue and linkage information explicitly. ```{r} glycoct <- paste0( "RES\n", "1b:b-dglc-HEX-1:5\n", "2b:b-dgal-HEX-1:5\n", "3b:a-dgal-HEX-1:5\n", "LIN\n", "1:1o(4+1)2d\n", "2:2o(3+1)3d" ) parse_glycoct(glycoct) ``` ### WURCS WURCS (Web3 Unique Representation of Carbohydrate Structures) is a compact standardised exchange format used by resources such as GlyTouCan. ```{r} wurcs <- paste0( "WURCS=2.0/3,3,2/", "[a2122h-1b_1-5][a1122h-1b_1-5][a1122h-1a_1-5]/", "1-2-3/a4-b1_b3-c1" ) parse_wurcs(wurcs) ``` ### KCF KCF represents a glycan as a graph with `NODE` and `EDGE` sections. It is used by KEGG GLYCAN. ```{r} kcf <- paste0( "ENTRY G00066 Glycan\n", "NODE 6\n", " 1 Cer 18 0\n", " 2 Glc 12 0\n", " 3 Gal 6 0\n", " 4 GlcNAc -2 0\n", " 5 Gal -10 0\n", " 6 GlcNAc -18 0\n", "EDGE 5\n", " 1 2:b1 1:1\n", " 2 3:b1 2:4\n", " 3 4:b1 3:3\n", " 4 5:b1 4:4\n", " 5 6:b1 5:3\n", "///" ) parse_kcf(kcf) ``` ### Linear Code Linear Code is a compact notation used in literature and glycan software: ```{r} linear_code <- "Ma3(Ma6)Mb4GNb4GNb" parse_linear_code(linear_code) ``` ### LINUCS LINUCS expresses each residue as a token followed by a braced child list. A linkage such as `[(4+1)]` records the parent and child positions. ```{r} linucs <- "[][b-D-Glcp]{[(4+1)][b-D-Galp]{}}" parse_linucs(linucs) ``` ## Part 4: Software-specific formats ### GlycoWorkbench GlycoWorkbench strings describe the structure from the reducing end and may include mass options after `$`. Those options are ignored because they are not part of the glycan graph. ```{r} gwb <- paste0( "freeEnd--1b1D-GlcNAc,p(--6a1L-Fuc,p)", "--4b1D-Gal,p--3a2D-NeuAc,p$MONO,Und,0,0,freeEnd" ) parse_gwb(gwb) ``` ### pGlyco If you work with glycoproteomics, you may encounter pGlyco's parenthetical notation: ```{r} pglyco <- "(N(F)(N(H(H(N))(H(N(H))))))" parse_pglyco_struc(pglyco) ``` In this notation: - N = HexNAc - F = Fuc - H = Hex (Man or Gal) ### StrucGP StrucGP uses a letter-based encoding system: ```{r} strucgp <- "A2B2C1D1E2F1fedD1E2edcbB5ba" parse_strucgp_struc(strucgp) ``` ## Handling parsing failures By default, a malformed structure stops the call with an informative error. When processing a larger collection, `on_failure = "na"` preserves the input positions and returns `NA` for records that cannot be parsed. ```{r} parse_iupac_compact( c(valid = "Galb1-3GalNAca", invalid = "not a glycan"), on_failure = "na" ) ```