Synthesis of lucifensin by native chemical ligation and characteristics of its isomer having different disulfide bridge pattern

General lack of structural characterization of chemically synthesized long peptides

Many peptide chemistry scientists have been reporting extremely interesting work on the basis of chemical peptides for which the only characterization was their purity, mass, and biological activity. It seems slightly overenthusiastic, as many of these structures should be thoroughly characterized first to demonstrate the uniqueness of the structure, as opposed to the uniqueness of the sequence. Among the peptides of identical sequences in the final chemical preparation, what amount of well-folded peptide supports the measured activity? The activity of a peptide preparation cannot prove the purity of the desired peptide. Therefore, greater care should be taken in characterizing peptides, particularly those coming from chemical synthesis. At a time when the pharmaceutical industry is changing its paradigm by moving substantially from small molecules to biologics to better serve patients' needs, it is important to understand the limitations of the descriptions of these products and to start to apply the same "good laboratory practices" to our peptide research. Here, we attempt to delineate how synthetic peptides are described and characterized and what will be needed to describe them in regards to how they are well-folded and homogeneous in their tertiary structure. Older studies were done when the tools were not yet discovered, but more recent publications are still lacking proper descriptions of these peptides. Modern tools of analysis are capable of segregating folded and unfolded peptides, even if the preparation is biologically active.

Interaction of Halictine-Related Antimicrobial Peptides with Membrane Models

We have investigated structural changes of peptides related to antimicrobial peptide Halictine-1 (HAL-1) induced by interaction with various membrane-mimicking models with the aim to identify a mechanism of the peptide mode of action and to find a correlation between changes of primary/secondary structure and biological activity. Modifications in the HAL-1 amino acid sequence at particular positions, causing an increase of amphipathicity (Arg/Lys exchange), restricted mobility (insertion of Pro) and consequent changes in antimicrobial and hemolytic activity, led to different behavior towards model membranes. Secondary structure changes induced by peptide-membrane interaction were studied by circular dichroism, infrared spectroscopy, and fluorescence spectroscopy. The experimental results were complemented by molecular dynamics calculations. An α-helical structure has been found to be necessary but not completely sufficient for the HAL-1 peptides antimicrobial action. The role of alternative conformations (such as β-sheet, PPII or 3₁₀-helix) also seems to be important. A mechanism of the peptide mode of action probably involves formation of peptide assemblies (possibly membrane pores), which disrupt bacterial membrane and, consequently, allow membrane penetration.

Recent Advances in the Catalytic Synthesis of Imidazolidin-2-ones and Benzimidazolidin-2-ones

2-Imidazolidinone and its analogues are omnipresent structural motifs of pharmaceuticals, natural products, chiral auxiliaries, and intermediates in organic syntheses. Over the years, continuous efforts have been addressed to the development of sustainable and more efficient protocols for the synthesis of these heterocycles. This review gives a summary of the catalytic strategies to access imidazolidin-2-ones and benzimidazolidin-2-ones that have appeared in the literature from 2010 to 2018. Particularly important contributions beyond the timespan will be mentioned. The review is organized in four main chapters that identify the most common approaches to imidazolidin-2-one derivatives: (1) the direct incorporation of the carbonyl group into 1,2-diamines, (2) the diamination of olefins, (3) the intramolecular hydroamination of linear urea derivatives and (4) aziridine ring expansion. Methods not included in this classification will be addressed in the miscellaneous section.