Symbol Nomenclature for Glycans (SNFG)

Because of the importance of using a common “language” to describe glycan structures, a group of senior members of the glycobiology community have proposed a standard set of symbols (for details, see the Glycoforum article published in December 2015). The use of these symbols is now strongly recommended for all manuscripts submitted to Glycobiology (see Instructions to Authors). Realizing the need for a standard acronym to refer to the new glycan nomenclature, the editors of Essentials of Glycobiology have suggested SNFG (symbol nomenclature for glycans). This name recognizes the fact that although the current nomenclature update arose from the editors need to standardize a system for the third edition, many others eventually contributed towards it final creation, and it therefore belongs to the community. The use of the term SNFG should cite the original Glycoforum article and can include the NCBI link, for example, “Monosaccharide symbols in this figure follow the SNFG (Symbol Nomenclature for Glycans) system (cite Glycoforum article), details of which can be found at NCBI).”