Peroxide dependence of the semisynthetic enzyme selenosubtilisin

A Bioresponsive Diselenide-functionalized Hydrogel with Cascade Catalytic Activities for Enhanced Local Starvation- and Hypoxia-Activated Melanoma Therapy

Glutathione (GSH) consumption-enhanced cancer therapies represent important potential cancer treatment strategies. Herein, we developed a new multifunctional diselenide-crosslinked hydrogel with glutathione peroxidase (GPx)-like catalytic activity for GSH depletion-enhanced glucose oxidase (GOx)-mediated tumor starvation and hypoxia-activated chemotherapy. By increasing acid and H₂O₂ during GOx-induced tumor starvation, the degradation of the multiresponsive scaffold could be promoted, which led to accelerated release of the loaded drugs. Meanwhile, the overproduced H₂O₂ led to accelerated intracellular GSH consumption under the cascade catalysis of small molecular selenides released from the degraded hydrogel, further enhancing the curative effect of in situ H₂O₂ and subsequent multimodal cancer treatment. Following the GOx-induced amplification of hypoxia, tirapazamine (TPZ) was transformed into the highly toxic benzotriazinyl radical (BTZ·), exhibiting enhanced antitumor activity. This GSH depletion-augmented cancer treatment strategy effectively boosted GOx-mediated tumor starvation and activated the hypoxia drug, leading to significantly enhanced local anticancer efficacy. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: There has been a growing interest in depleting intracellular GSH as a potential strategy for improving ROS-based cancer therapy. Herein, a bioresponsive diselenide-functionalized dextran-based hydrogel with GPx-like catalytic activity was developed for GSH consumption-enhanced local starvation- and hypoxia-activated melanoma therapy. Results showed that the overproduced H₂O₂ led to accelerated intracellular GSH consumption under the cascade catalysis of small molecular selenides released from the degraded hydrogel, further enhancing the curative effect of in situ H₂O₂ and subsequent multimodal cancer treatment.

Construction of pH sensitive smart glutathione peroxidase (GPx) mimics based on pH responsive pseudorotaxanes

Two organoselenium compounds, both of which were modified with two primary amine groups, were designed and synthesized to mimic the catalytic properties of glutathione peroxidase (GPx). It was demonstrated that the catalytic mechanism of the diselenide organoselenium compound (compound 1) was a ping-pong mechanism while that of the selenide organoselenium compound (compound 2) was a sequential mechanism. The pH-controlled switching of the catalytic activities was achieved by controlling the formation and dissociation of the pseudorotaxanes based on the organoselenium compounds and cucurbit[6]uril (CB[6]). Moreover, the switching was reversible at pH between 7 and 9 for compound 1 or between 7 and 10 for compound 2.

Selenium and Selenocysteine in Protein Chemistry

Selenocysteine, the selenium-containing analogue of cysteine, is the twenty-first proteinogenic amino acid. Since its discovery almost fifty years ago, it has been exploited in unnatural systems even more often than in natural systems. Selenocysteine chemistry has attracted the attention of many chemists in the field of chemical biology owing to its high reactivity and resulting potential for various applications such as chemical modification, chemical protein (semi)synthesis, and protein folding, to name a few. In this Minireview, we will focus on the chemistry of selenium and selenocysteine and their utility in protein chemistry.

Selenium-Functionalized Graphene Oxide That Can Modulate the Balance of Reactive Oxygen Species

Graphene oxide (GO) is an important two-dimensional material since it is water-soluble and can be functionalized to adapt to different applications. However, the current covalent functionalization methods usually require hash conditions, long duration, and sometimes even multiple steps, while noncovalent functionalization is inevitably unstable, especially under a physiological environment where competing species exist. Diselenide bond is a dynamic covalent bond and can respond to both redox conditions and visible light irradiation in a sensitive manner. Thus, in this work by combining the stimuli response of diselenide bond and the oxidative/radical attackable nature of GO, we achieved the in situ covalent functionalization of GO simply by stirring GO with diselenide-containing molecules in aqueous solution. The covalent functionalization was proved by Fourier transform infrared, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry, atomic force microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and so forth, and the functionalization mechanism was deduced to involve both redox reaction and radical addition reaction according to the X-ray photoelectron spectrscopy, atomic emission spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. Moreover, we modified GO with a biocompatible diselenide-containing polymer (mPEGSe)₂ and found selenium-functionalized GO could modulate the balance of reactive oxygen species (ROS). GOSe could decrease ROS level by accelerating the reduction of peroxides when the ROS concentration is high while boosting the ROS level by in situ generating ROS when its concentration is relatively low.

Insights into the catalytic mechanism of synthetic glutathione peroxidase mimetics

Glutathione Peroxidase (GPx) is a key selenoenzyme that protects biomolecules from oxidative damage. Extensive research has been carried out to design and synthesize small organoselenium compounds as functional mimics of GPx. While the catalytic mechanism of the native enzyme itself is poorly understood, the synthetic mimics follow different catalytic pathways depending upon the structures and reactivities of various intermediates formed in the catalytic cycle. The steric as well as electronic environments around the selenium atom not only modulate the reactivity of these synthetic mimics towards peroxides and thiols, but also the catalytic mechanisms. The catalytic cycle of small GPx mimics is also dependent on the nature of peroxides and thiols used in the study. In this review, we discuss how the catalytic mechanism varies with the substituents attached to the selenium atom.

Tuning polymeric amphiphilicity via Se-N interactions: towards one-step double emulsion for highly selective enzyme mimics

A selenium-containing small molecule is exploited to controllably tune the polymer amphiphilicity, leading to fabrication of appropriate polymer surfactants through which one-step double emulsions can be obtained in a facile, scalable, surfactant-free approach. After solvent evaporation, these resulting porous microparticles are shown to be the exceptional artificial GPx enzyme mimics.

Reversible pH-controlled switching of an artificial antioxidant selenoenzyme based on pseudorotaxane formation and dissociation

A conceptual smart GPx model that showed a response to pH stimuli was developed by using a simple selenium-containing compound and a cucurbit[6]uril-pseudorotaxane-based molecular switch.

Oxidative inactivation of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B by organic hydroperoxides

Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) are cysteine-dependent enzymes that play a central role in cell signaling. Organic hydroperoxides cause thiol-reversible, oxidative inactivation of PTP1B in a manner that mirrors the endogenous signaling agent hydrogen peroxide.

Cyclodextrin-derived mimic of glutathione peroxidase exhibiting enzymatic specificity and high catalytic efficiency

To elucidate the relationships between molecular recognition and catalytic ability, we chose three assay systems using three different thiol substrates, glutathione (GSH), 3-carboxyl-4-nitrobenzenethiol (CNBSH), and 4-nitrobenzenethiol (NBSH), to investigate the glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities of 2,2'-ditellurobis(2-deoxy-beta-cyclodextrin) (2-TeCD) in the presence of a variety of structurally distinct hydroperoxides (ROOH), H2O2, tert-butyl peroxide (tBuOOH), and cumene peroxide (CuOOH), as the oxidative reagent. A comparative study of the three assay systems revealed that the cyclodextrin moiety of the GPx mimic 2-TeCD endows the molecule with selectivity for ROOH and thiol substrates, and hydrophobic interactions are the most important driving forces in 2-TeCD complexation. Furthermore, in the novel NBSH assay system, 2-TeCD can catalyze the reduction of ROOH about 3.4 x 10(5) times more efficiently than diphenyl diselenide (PhSeSePh), and its second-order rate constants for thiol are similar to some of those of native GPx. This comparative study confirms that efficient binding of the substrate is essential for the catalytic ability of the GPx mimic, and that NBSH is the preferred thiol substrate of 2-TeCD among the chosen thiol substrates. Importantly, the proposed mode of action of 2-TeCD imitates the role played by several possible noncovalent interactions between enzymes and substrates in influencing catalysis and binding.

Minimalist active-site redesign: teaching old enzymes new tricks

Although nature evolves its catalysts over millions of years, enzyme engineers try to do it a bit faster. Enzyme active sites provide highly optimized microenvironments for the catalysis of biologically useful chemical transformations. Consequently, changes at these centers can have large effects on enzyme activity. The prediction and control of these effects provides a promising way to access new functions. The development of methods and strategies to explore the untapped catalytic potential of natural enzyme scaffolds has been pushed by the increasing demand for industrial biocatalysts. This Review describes the use of minimal modifications at enzyme active sites to expand their catalytic repertoires, including targeted mutagenesis and the addition of new reactive functionalities. Often, a novel activity can be obtained with only a single point mutation. The many successful examples of active-site engineering through minimal mutations give useful insights into enzyme evolution and open new avenues in biocatalyst research.

A novel dicyclodextrinyl diselenide compound with glutathione peroxidase activity

A 6A,6A'-dicyclohexylamine-6B,6B'-diselenide-bis-beta-cyclodextrin (6-CySeCD) was designed and synthesized to imitate the antioxidant enzyme glutathione peroxidase (GPX). In this novel GPX model, beta-cyclodextrin provided a hydrophobic environment for substrate binding within its cavity, and a cyclohexylamine group was incorporated into cyclodextrin in proximity to the catalytic selenium in order to increase the stability of the nucleophilic intermediate selenolate. 6-CySeCD exhibits better GPX activity than 6,6'-diselenide-bis-cyclodextrin (6-SeCD) and 2-phenyl-1,2-benzoisoselenazol-3(2H)-one (Ebselen) in the reduction of H(2)O(2), tert-butyl hydroperoxide and cumenyl hydroperoxide by glutathione, respectively. A ping-pong mechanism was observed in steady-state kinetic studies on 6-CySeCD-catalyzed reactions. The enzymatic properties showed that there are two major factors for improving the catalytic efficiency of GPX mimics. First, the substrate-binding site should match the size and shape of the substrate and second, incorporation of an imido-group increases the stability of selenolate in the catalytic cycle. More efficient antioxidant ability compared with 6-SeCD and Ebselen was also seen in the ferrous sulfate/ascorbate-induced mitochondria damage system, and this implies its prospective therapeutic application.

Selenium-mediated micellar catalyst: an efficient enzyme model for glutathione peroxidase-like catalysis

Mimicking the properties of the selenoenzyme glutathione peroxidase (GPx) has inspired great interest. In this report, a selenium-containing micellar catalyst was successfully constructed by the self-assembly of the cationic surfactant hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) with benzeneseleninic acid (PhSeO2H) through hydrophobic and electrostatic interaction in water. The selenium-containing micellar catalyst demonstrated substrate specificity for both 3-carboxy-4-nitrobenzenethiol (ArSH, 2) and cumene hydroperoxide (CUOOH), and their complexation was confirmed by UV and fluorescence spectra. More importantly, it demonstrated high GPx activity in two assay systems. It is about 126 times more effective than the well-known GPx mimic ebselen in the classical coupled reductase assay system; however, by using hydrophobic substrate ArSH (2) as an alternative of glutathione (GSH, 1), the micellar catalyst exhibited remarkable 500-fold and 94 500-fold rate enhancements compared with that of PhSeO2H and PhSeSePh.

Semisynthetic Tellurosubtilisin with Glutathione Peroxidase Activity

Reaction of the hydroxyl group of serine-221 of subtilisin with phenylmethanesulfonylfluoride followed by nucleophilic substitution with sodium hydrogen telluride, a semisynthetic telluroprotein, tellurosubtilisin, was prepared. Tellurosubtilisin, which displays high substrate specificity for aromatic thiols, exhibits remarkable peroxidase activity and catalyzes the reduction of hydrogen peroxide by 3-carboxy-4-nitrobenzenethiol 20 000 times more efficiently than diphenyl diselenide.

Kinetic studies on the glutathione peroxidase activity of selenium-containing glutathione transferase

Selenium-containing glutathione transferase (seleno-GST) was generated by biologically incorporating selenocysteine into the active site of glutathione transferase (GST) from a blowfly Lucilia cuprina (Diptera: Calliphoridae). Seleno-GST mimicked the antioxidant enzyme glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and catalyzed the reduction of structurally different hydroperoxides by glutathione. Kinetic investigations reveal a ping-pong kinetic mechanism in analogy with that of the natural GPx cycle as opposed to the sequential one of the wild type GST. This difference of the mechanisms might result from the intrinsic chemical properties of the incorporated residue selenocysteine, and the selenium-dependent mechanism is suggested to contribute to enhancement of the enzymatic efficiency.

Aryl Thiol Substrate 3-Carboxy-4-Nitrobenzenethiol Strongly Stimulating Thiol Peroxidase Activity of Glutathione Peroxidase Mimic 2, 2'-Ditellurobis(2-Deoxy-β-Cyclodextrin)

Artificial glutathione peroxidase (GPx) model 2, 2'-ditellurobis(2-deoxy-beta-cyclodextrin) (2-TeCD) which has the desirable properties exhibited high substrate specificity and remarkably catalytic efficiency when 3-carboxy-4-nitrobenzenethiol (ArSH) was used as a preferential thiol substrate. The complexation of ArSH with beta-cyclodextrin was investigated through UV spectral titrations, fluorescence spectroscopy, 1H NMR and molecular simulation, and these results indicated that ArSH fits well to the size of the cavity of beta-cyclodextrin. Furthermore, 2-TeCD was found to catalyze the reduction of cumene peroxide (CuOOH) by ArSH 200,000-fold more efficiently than diphenyl diselenide (PhSeSePh). Its steady-state kinetics was studied and the second rate constant kmax/KArSH was found to be 1.05 x 10(7) M(-1) min(-1) and similar to that of natural GPx. Moreover, the kinetic data revealed that the catalytic efficiency of 2-TeCD depended strongly upon the competitive recognition of both substrates for 2-TeCD. The catalytic mechanism of 2-TeCD catalysis agreed well with a ping-pong mechanism, in analogy with natural GPx, and might exert its thiol peroxidase activity via tellurol, tellurenic acid, and tellurosulfide.

A semisynthetic glutathione peroxidase with high catalytic efficiency. Selenoglutathione transferase

Glutathione peroxidase (GPX) protects cells against oxidative damage by catalyzing the reduction of hydroperoxides by glutathione (GSH). GPX therefore has potential therapeutic value as an antioxidant, but its pharmacological development has been limited because GPX uses a selenocysteine as its catalytic group and it is difficult to generate selenium-containing proteins with traditional recombinant DNA technology. Here, we show that naturally occurring proteins can be modified to generate GPX activity. The rat theta-class glutathione transferase T2-2 (rGST T2-2) presents an ideal scaffold for the design of a novel GPX catalyst because it already binds GSH and contains a serine close to the substrate binding site, which can be chemically modified to bind selenium. The modified Se-rGST T2-2 efficiently catalyzes the reduction of hydrogen peroxide, and the GPX activity surpasses the activities of some natural GPXs.

Generation of three selenium-containing catalytic antibodies with high catalytic efficiency using a novel hapten design method

A novel strategy for design of haptens that were used to produce catalytic antibodies was developed and three monoclonal antibodies, 3G5, 2F3, and 5C9, were generated using this strategy. These monoclonal antibodies were converted into selenium-containing abzymes by chemically modifying the hydroxyl group of serines followed by sodium hydrogen selenide displacement. These selenium-containing abzymes exhibited remarkable glutathione peroxidase activity, which surpasses the activity of some native glutathione peroxidases. The activities of the selenium-containing abzymes Se-3G5, Se-2F3, and Se-5C9 which catalyzed reduction of hydroperoxides by glutathione were 2.23, 4.20, and 3.79 times that of rabbit liver glutathione peroxidase, respectively. Detailed steady-state kinetics study on Se-2F3 was carried out and the value of k(cat)/K(m) (H(2)O(2)) was found to be 2.11 x 10(7) M(-1) min(-1) which was supposed to be one of the highest among the known catalytic antibodies. The data of association constants and glutathione peroxidase activities of these catalytic antibodies and the steady-state kinetics of Se-2F3 showed that the method might be a remarkably efficient one for generating catalytic antibodies with glutathione peroxidase activity.

Glutathione peroxidase-like antioxidant activity of diaryl diselenides: a mechanistic study

The synthesis, structure, and thiol peroxidase-like antioxidant activities of several diaryl diselenides having intramolecularly coordinating amino groups are described. The diselenides derived from enantiomerically pure R-(+)- and S-(-)-N,N-dimethyl(1-ferrocenylethyl)amine show excellent peroxidase activity. To investigate the mechanistic role of various organoselenium intermediates, a detailed in situ characterization of the intermediates has been carried out by (77)Se NMR spectroscopy. While most of the diselenides exert their peroxidase activity via selenol, selenenic acid, and selenenyl sulfide intermediates, the differences in the relative activities of the diselenides are due to the varying degree of intramolecular Se.N interaction. The diselenides having strong Se.N interactions are found to be inactive due to the ability of their selenenyl sulfide derivatives to enhance the reverse GPx cycle (RSeSR + H(2)O(2) = RSeOH). In these cases, the nucleophilic attack of thiol takes place preferentially at selenium rather than sulfur and this reduces the formation of selenol by terminating the forward reaction. On the other hand, the diselenides having weak Se.N interactions are found to be more active due to the fast reaction of the selenenyl sulfide derivatives with thiol to produce diphenyl disulfide and the expected selenol (RSeSR + PhSH = PhSSPh + RSeH). The unsubstituted diaryl diselenides are found to be less active due to the slow reactions of these diselenides with thiol and hydrogen peroxide and also due to the instability of the intermediates. The catalytic cycles of 18 and 19 strongly resemble the mechanism by which the natural enzyme, glutathione peroxidase, catalyzes the reduction of hydroperoxides.

Protein engineering of subtilisin

The serine protease subtilisin is an important industrial enzyme as well as a model for understanding the enormous rate enhancements affected by enzymes. For these reasons along with the timely cloning of the gene, ease of expression and purification and availability of atomic resolution structures, subtilisin became a model system for protein engineering studies in the 1980s. Fifteen years later, mutations in well over 50% of the 275 amino acids of subtilisin have been reported in the scientific literature. Most subtilisin engineering has involved catalytic amino acids, substrate binding regions and stabilizing mutations. Stability has been the property of subtilisin which has been most amenable to enhancement, yet perhaps least understood. This review will give a brief overview of the subtilisin engineering field, critically review what has been learned about subtilisin stability from protein engineering experiments and conclude with some speculation about the prospects for future subtilisin engineering.

A bis-cyclodextrin diselenide with glutathione peroxidase-like activity

A diselenide, 2,2'-diseleno-bis-beta-cyclodextrin (2-SeCD), was synthesized to imitate the antioxidant enzyme glutathione peroxidase (GPX). The GPX mimic accepts a variety of hydroperoxides as substrates. The GPX activities, reduction of H(2)O(2), tert-butyl hydroperoxide and cumenyl hydroperoxide by glutathione, are 7.4, 4.5 and 10.2 U/micromol, respectively. In contrast to ebselen (PZ51), the diselenide displays high GPX-like activity. The reduction of hydroperoxide by glutathione in the presence of a radical trap shows that the mimic catalyzes the reaction via a non-radical mechanism. A ping-pong mechanism was observed in the steady-state kinetic studies of the 2-SeCD-catalyzed reaction.

Semisynthetic Enzymes in Asymmetric Synthesis: Enantioselective Reduction of Racemic Hydroperoxides Catalyzed by Seleno-Subtilisin

The serine protease subtilisin was chemically converted into the peroxidase-active seleno-subtilisin. This semisynthetic enzyme catalyzes the enantioselective reduction of racemic hydroperoxides in the presence of thiophenols to yield optically active hydroperoxides and alcohols on the semipreparative scale. The kinetic parameters and enantioselectivities of seleno-subtilisin-catalyzed reduction of various chiral hydroperoxides were determined. The catalytic efficiency of this semisynthetic enzyme is comparable to that of the native horseradish peroxidase. The sense in the enantioselectivity of the seleno-subtilisin is opposite to the natural enzymes previously used in the synthesis of optically active hydroperoxides. Consequently, the semisynthetic enzyme seleno-subtilisin complements the naturally available peroxidases for the asymmetric synthesis of both enantiomers.

Substituting selenocysteine for active site cysteine 149 of phosphorylating glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase reveals a peroxidase activity

Replacing the essential Cys-149 by a selenocysteine into the active site of phosphorylating glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) from Bacillus stearothermophilus leads to a selenoGAPDH that mimics a selenoperoxidase activity. Saturation kinetics were observed with cumenyl and tert-butyl hydroperoxides, with a better catalytic efficiency for the aromatic compound. The enzymatic mechanism fits a sequential model where the formation of a ternary complex between the holoselenoenzyme, the 3-carboxy 4-nitrobenzenethiol used as the reductant and the hydroperoxide precedes product release. The fact that the selenoGAPDH is NAD-saturated supports a binding of hydroperoxide and reductant in the substrate binding site. The catalytic efficiency is similar to selenosubtilisins but remains low compared to selenoglutathione peroxidase. This is discussed in relation to what is known from the X-ray crystal structures of selenoglutathione peroxidase and GAPDHs.

The design of protein-based catalysts using semisynthetic methods

The combination of site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modification has resulted in the preparation of protein conjugates with new and useful properties. Proteins modified with metal-chelating groups are proving useful for mapping tertiary and quaternary interactions using the technique of affinity cleavage. The attachment of cofactors, including pyridoxal and pyridoxamine, has resulted in the preparation of semisynthetic transaminases that display enzyme-like properties, including enantioselectivity, substrate specificity and reaction-rate acceleration.

Reasoning enantioselectivity and kinetics of seleno-subtilisin from the subtilisin template

The active-site serine (Ser221) of subtilisin Carlsberg(from Bacillus licheniformis) and subtilisin BPN' (fromBacillus amyloliquefaciens) was chemically converted into a selenocystein. Contrary to subtilisin's protease activity the semisynthetic seleno-subtilisin catalyzed the reduction of hydroperoxides. Enantioselectivity and kinetics of this reaction were studied by kinetic resolution of five racemic alkyl aryl hydroperoxides catalyzed by the seleno-subtilisin variants. Due to the identical tertiary structure of subtilisin and seleno-subtilisin, the enzymes have comparable substrate binding properties. Thus, a rational screening for suitable peroxidase substrates featuring structural characteristics of known subtilisin substrates was enabled. The enantioselective recognition of (S)-configured alkyl aryl hydroperoxides by seleno-subtilisin was comprehensible by subtilisin's preference for comparable (S)-alkyl aryl amines or alcohols. The analysis of chiral products by multidimensional gas chromatography revealed enantiomeric excesses up to 98%. Kinetics of seleno-subtilisin were rationalized on the basis of the established substrate-catalyst interactions of the subtilisin framework. The Carlsberg and BPN' peroxidase variants revealed typical differences in turnover numbers (kcat) and Michaelis-Menten affinity constants (Km) already known from subtilisin variants. Turnover numbers of seleno-subtilisin BPN' were lower and Km values were higher in comparison to Carlsberg variant. Substrate affinity of several substituted 1-arylethyl hydroperoxides to seleno-subtilisin was reasonable in comparison to corresponding aryl boronic acid inhibitors of subtilisin.

Nonessential active site residues modulate selenosubtilisin's kinetic mechanism

Selenosubtilisin, a semisynthetic enzyme produced by chemical modification of subtilisin's catalytic serine, mimics the antioxidant enzyme glutathione peroxidase, catalyzing the reduction of hydroperoxides by 3-carboxy-4-nitrobenzenethiol. In analogy with the unmodified protease, selenosubtilisins derived from distantly related subtilisin templates exhibit significantly different kinetic properties. Selenosubtilisin BPN' not only is less active than the previously studied Carlsberg selenoenzyme but exhibits sequential rather than ping-pong kinetics, indicating the formation of a ternary complex between enzyme, thiol, and peroxide prior to product release. Experiments with subtilisin E and the BPN' Y217L variant show that the observed differences in kinetic mechanism and chemical efficiency can be attributed largely to amino acid substitutions in the enzyme's S1 and S1' binding sites, respectively. These contributions appear to be roughly additive, and a BPN' triple mutant (E156S/G169A/Y217L) has properties that closely approximate those of selenosubtilisin Carlsberg. The kinetic mechanism of selenosubtilisin can thus be controlled by limited mutagenesis of several active site residues not directly involved in the redox chemistry.

Towards engineering proteins by site-directed incorporation in vivo of non-natural amino acids

Altering protein structure via the techniques of protein engineering has already allowed the development of proteins displaying both modified and novel activities. The only limitation of conventional site-directed mutagenesis, the cornerstone of protein engineering, is that substitutions are restricted to the 20 naturally occurring, proteinogenic amino acids. However, the discovery of a 21st amino acid, selenocysteine, and the development of novel in vitro translation systems have demonstrated that considerably more substitutions are possible. To this end, a number of experimental approaches have been developed that allow the incorporation of synthetic amino acids into proteins. Some of these have already been successfully applied in vitro and efforts to transfer this technology to in vivo systems are now underway.