Solid peptide synthesis

Modern combinatorial chemistry involves a number of steps that begin with the creation of a library of molecules that are closely related in structure. The library can be created in two ways (a) parallel synthesis, which is simultaneous synthesis of numerous products in separate discrete reaction vessels (b) combinatorial synthesis, of numerous reactions within one single reaction vessel followed by separations. The initial successes in parallel synthesis have been in solid peptide synthesis of proteins, which was based on Merrifield s solid-phase peptide synthesis. 

M. Erbeldinger, X. Ni, and P. J. Halling, Effect of water and enzyme concentration on thermolysin-catalyzed solid-to-solid peptide synthesis, Biotechnol. Bioeng. 1998, 59, 68-72. 

Chaiwut P, Kanasawud P, Hailing PJ (2007) Solid-to-solid peptide synthesis by glycyl endopepti-dase. Enzyme Microb Technol 40(4) 954-960... 

To improve the access to the functional groups, Lee and coworkers developed a process of placing most of the functional groups on the outer surface of the polystyrene beads [7]. This was done by surface aminomethylation of preformed cross-Unked commercially available polystyrene beads. Such bead usually range in size from 100 to 400 mesh (in.) in diameter and can be functionalized by surface reactions or by surface grafts. This yielded materials with a lower number of functional groups, but with the majority of them being accessible. Lee and coworkers then utilized the beads in a solid peptide synthesis [7]. 

We shall now exemplify the solid-phase peptide synthesis approach by c )c/o-[-L-Val-[)-Pro-D-Val-L-Pro-]], which was prepared by Merrifield himself, the inventor of the method (B.F. Gisin, 1972). 

The major disadvantage of solid-phase peptide synthesis is the fact that ail the by-products attached to the resin can only be removed at the final stages of synthesis. Another problem is the relatively low local concentration of peptide which can be obtained on the polymer, and this limits the turnover of all other educts. Preparation of large quantities (> 1 g) is therefore difficult. Thirdly, the racemization-safe methods for acid activation, e.g. with azides, are too mild (= slow) for solid-phase synthesis. For these reasons the convenient Menifield procedures are quite generally used for syntheses of small peptides, whereas for larger polypeptides many research groups adhere to classic solution methods and purification after each condensation step (F.M. Finn, 1976). 

Sections 27 15 through 27 17 describe the chemistry associated with the protection and deprotection of ammo and carboxyl functions along with methods for peptide bond formation The focus m those sections is on solution phase peptide synthesis Section 27 18 shows how these methods are adapted to solid phase synthesis... 

Solid Phase Peptide Synthesis The Mernfield Method... 

SOLID-PHASE PEPTIDE SYNTHESIS THE MERRIFIELD METHOD... 

The actual process of solid phase peptide synthesis outlined m Figure 27 15 begins with the attachment of the C terminal ammo acid to the chloromethylated polymer m step 1 Nucleophilic substitution by the carboxylate anion of an N Boc protected C terminal... 

FIGURE 27 14 A section of polystyrene showing one of the benzene rings modified by chloromethylation Indi vidual polystyrene chains in the resin used in solid phase peptide synthesis are con nected to one another at various points (cross linked) by adding a small amount of p divinylbenzene to the styrene monomer The chloromethylation step is carried out under conditions such that only about 10% of the benzene rings bear —CH2CI groups... 

Memfield successfully automated all the steps m solid phase peptide synthesis and computer controlled equipment is now commercially available to perform this synthesis Using an early version of his peptide synthesizer m collaboration with coworker Bemd Gutte Memfield reported the synthesis of the enzyme ribonuclease m 1969 It took them only SIX weeks to perform the 369 reactions and 11 391 steps necessary to assemble the sequence of 124 ammo acids of ribonuclease... 

Solid phase peptide synthesis does not solve all purification problems however Even if every coupling step m the ribonuclease synthesis proceeded in 99% yield the product would be contaminated with many different peptides containing 123 ammo acids 122 ammo acids and so on Thus Memfield and Gutte s six weeks of synthesis was fol lowed by four months spent m purifying the final product The technique has since been refined to the point that yields at the 99% level and greater are achieved with current instrumentation and thousands of peptides and peptide analogs have been prepared by the solid phase method... 

Memfield s concept of a solid phase method for peptide synthesis and his devel opment of methods for carrying it out set the stage for an entirely new way to do chem ical reactions Solid phase synthesis has been extended to include numerous other classes of compounds and has helped spawn a whole new field called combinatorial chemistry Combinatorial synthesis allows a chemist using solid phase techniques to prepare hun dreds of related compounds (called libraries) at a time It is one of the most active areas of organic synthesis especially m the pharmaceutical industry... 

FIGURE 27 15 Peptide synthesis by the solid phase method Ammo acid residues are attached sequentially beginning at the C terminus... 

Merrifield method See solid phase peptide synthesis Meso stereoisomer (Section 7 11) An achiral molecule that has chirality centers The most common kind of meso com pound IS a molecule with two chirality centers and a plane of symmetry... 

Solid phase peptide synthesis (Section 27 18) Method for peptide synthesis m which the C terminal ammo acid is co valently attached to an inert solid support and successive ammo acids are attached via peptide bond formation At the completion of the synthesis the polypeptide is removed from the support... 

J. M. Stewart and J. D. Young, Solid Phase Peptide Synthesis, 2nd ed.. Pierce Chemical Company, Rockford, IL, 1984. 

E. Atherton and R. C. Sheppard, Solid Phase Peptide Synthesis. A Practical Approach, Oxford-IRL Press, New York, 1989. 

H2/Pd-C, EtOH, 20°. < -Bromobenzyl carbonates have been developed for use in solid-phase peptide synthesis. An aryl o-bromobenzyl carbonate is stable to acidic cleavage (CF3CO2H) of a /-butyl carbamate a benzyl carbonate is cleaved. 

Polymer-supported esters are widely used in solid-phase peptide synthesis, and extensive information for this specialized protection is reported annually. Some activated esters that have been used as macrolide precursors and some that have been used in peptide synthesis are also described in this chapter the many activated esters that are used in peptide synthesis are discussed elsewhere. A useful... 

At the time of writing this book, SPOS is in an area of reladve infancy but has considerable potential. One of the main difficulties in SPOS lies in the lack of techniques available to monitor reacdons carried out on polymer supports. Unlike reacdons in solution phase, reactions on solid support cannot be monitored with relative ease and this has hindered the progress as well as the efficacy of solid supported synthesis of small non-peptidic molecules. Despite these difficulties, a large body of studies is available for SPOS. Recent reviews incorporate... 

Merrifield was awarded the 1984 Nobel Prize in chemistry for developing the solid-phase method of peptide synthesis. 

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