Switching the N-Capping Region from all-L to all-D Amino Acids in a VEGF Mimetic Helical Peptide

The N-capping region of an α-helix is a short N-terminal amino acid stretch that contributes to nucleate and stabilize the helical structure. In the VEGF mimetic helical peptide QK, the N-capping region was previously demonstrated to be a key factor of QK helical folding. In this paper, we explored the effect of the chiral inversion of the N-capping sequence on QK folding, performing conformational analysis in solution by circular dichroism and NMR spectroscopy. The effect of such a modification on QK stability in serum and the proliferative effect were also evaluated.     

L-酒石酸型固定相对映分离氨基酸衍生物

在L-酒石酸衍生的键合网状聚合物HPLC手性固定相上正相拆分了7种氨基酸衍生物,考察了流动相中极性醇添加剂的种类、含量和柱温等对手性拆分效果的影响,结合计算得的热力学函数对手性识别机理进行了探讨。当流动相为正己烷：异丙醇(95：5),流速1mL／min,柱温25℃时,7种底物对映分离效果好,出峰时间均在12min以内。     

Directed Evolution of a Designer Enzyme Featuring an Unnatural Catalytic Amino Acid

The impressive rate accelerations that enzymes display in nature often result from boosting the inherent catalytic activities of side chains by their precise positioning inside a protein binding pocket. Such fine‐tuning is also possible for catalytic unnatural amino acids. Specifically, the directed evolution of a recently described designer enzyme, which utilizes an aniline side chain to promote a model hydrazone formation reaction, is reported. Consecutive rounds of directed evolution identified several mutations in the promiscuous binding pocket, in which the unnatural amino acid is embedded in the starting catalyst. When combined, these mutations boost the turnover frequency (k_cat) of the designer enzyme by almost 100‐fold. This results from strengthening the catalytic contribution of the unnatural amino acid, as the engineered designer enzymes outperform variants, in which the aniline side chain is replaced with a catalytically inactive tyrosine residue, by more than 200‐fold.     

Mechanism of di-tert-butylsilylene transfer from a silacyclopropane to an alkene

Kinetic and thermodynamic studies of the reactions of cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 and monosubstituted alkenes suggested a possible mechanism for di-tert-butylsilylene transfer. The kinetic order in cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 and cyclohexene were determined to be 1 and -1, respectively. Saturation kinetic behavior in monosubstituted alkene concentration was observed. Competition experiments between substituted styrenes and a deficient amount of di-tert-butylsilylene from 1 correlated well with the Hammett equation and provided a rho value of -0.666 +/- 0.008, using sigma(p) constants. These data supported a two-step mechanism involving reversible di-tert-butylsilylene extrusion from 1, followed by irreversible concerted electrophilic attack of the silylene on the monosubstituted alkene. Eyring activation parameters were found to be DeltaH++ = 22.1 +/- 0.9 kcal.mol(-1) and DeltaS++ = -15 +/- 2 eu. Competition experiments between cycloalkenes and allylbenzene determined cycloalkenes to be more efficient silylene traps (k(rel) =1.3, DeltaDeltaG++ = 0.200 kcal.mol(-1)). A summary of the data resulted in a postulated reaction coordinate diagram. The mechanistic studies enabled rational modification of reaction conditions that improved the synthetic utility of silylene transfer. Removal of the volatile cyclohexene from the reaction mixture into an evacuated headspace led to the formation of previously inaccessible cyclohexene-derived silacyclopropanes.     

古细菌Aeropyrum pernix K1超嗜热酯酶APE1547的稳定性

研究了纯化的超嗜热酯酶APE1547的稳定性. 结果表明, 该酶的稳定性非常好, 蛋白的质量浓度为0.4 mg/mL时, 90 ℃的半衰期为20 h, 0.2 mg/mL时的半衰期为12 h; 而蛋白的质量浓度为0.04 mg/mL时, 保温2.5 h时残余活力仍在50%以上. 同时还研究了热变性时该酶表面疏水氨基酸的变化. 该酶的pH稳定性也很好, pH在6.5-9.0范围内作用24 h, 酶依然很稳定, 残余酶活力大于93％; 同时该酶还具有很强的耐有机溶剂的特性.     

咪唑类离子液体与酪氨酸相互作用及机理的密度泛函理论研究

Ionic liquids (ILs) are thermally and chemically stable and have adjustable structures, which gives them the potential to be used as green, efficient biomolecular solvents. Given the critical role of ILs in dissolving biomolecules, the mechanism of interaction between them deserves further study. Herein, density functional theory (DFT) calculations, using the SMD implicit water solvent model, were employed to study the interaction and mechanism between a hydrophobic zwitterionic amino acid (Tyr) and a series of imidazolium ILs with different alkyl chain lengths and methylation sites. The contributions of hydrogen bonding (H-bonding), electrostatic effects, induction, and dispersion to the intermolecular interactions were determined by combining the symmetry-adapted perturbation theory (SAPT), the atoms in molecules (AIM) theory, and reduced density gradient (RDG) analysis. The results indicate that the H-bonding between the IL cation and Tyr is stronger than that between the IL anion and Tyr; however, the binding between either ion and Tyr is dominated by electrostatic effects. By contrast, the difference between the induction and dispersion forces is small when methylation occurs on the C2 site of the imidazolium cation; whereas, it is significantly large when methylation takes place on the N3 site. This is rationalized by the interaction patterns that vary based on the methylation site. H-bonding and π⁺-π stacking interactions between the imidazole and benzene rings are dominant during C2-methylation, while H-bonding and C_Alkyl-H…π interactions between the alkyl chain and benzene ring are dominant during N3-methylation. Increasing the side alkyl chain length has different effects on the interaction energy to cations with different methylation sites. During N3-methylation, when the side alkyl chain length increases from 4 to 12, there are significant van der Waals interactions between the Tyr benzene and the side alkyl chain. However, these van der Waals interactions are inapparent when methylation takes place on the C2 site. Finally, the synergetic effect of the H-bonding and the interaction between the benzene and the side alkyl chain for C2-methylation is greater than the H-bonding and the interaction between the imidazole and benzene rings for N3-methylation, when the side alkyl chain length n > 9. Therefore, the interaction strength and mechanism in these imidazolium-Tyr complexes can be regulated by changing the methylation site and the side alkyl chain length of the cation. Further study of ion-pair and Tyr reveals that the change tendency of the interaction energy of IL-Tyr systems is consistent with that of cation-Tyr cases, and the ion pair further stabilizes the binding with Tyr. These results illustrate the interaction mechanism of IL-Tyr systems and provide a novel strategy for the design and screening of functional ILs for amino acid extraction and separation in the future.     

Mechanism of silver-mediated di-tert-butylsilylene transfer from a silacyclopropane to an alkene

Kinetic studies of the reactions of cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 and monosubstituted alkenes in the presence of 5 mol % of (Ph3P)2AgOTf suggested a possible mechanism for silver-mediated di-tert-butylsilylene transfer. The kinetic order in cyclohexene silacyclopropane 1 was determined to be one. Inverse kinetic saturation behavior (rate inhibition) was observed in monosubstituted alkene and cyclohexene concentrations. Saturation kinetic behavior in catalyst concentration was observed. A reactive intermediate, a silylsilver complex, was observed using low temperature 29Si NMR spectroscopy. Competition experiments between substituted styrenes and a deficient amount of 1 correlated well with the Hammett equation and provided a rho value of -0.62 +/- 0.02 using sigmap constants. These data support a mechanism involving reversible silver-promoted di-tert-butylsilylene extrusion from 1 followed by irreversible concerted electrophilic attack of the silylsilver intermediate on the alkene.     

Multilevel Chirality Transfer from Amino Acid Derivatives to Circularly Polarized Luminescence-Active Nanoparticles in Aqueous Medium

Chirality at different levels is widely observed in nature, but the clue to connect it all together, and the way chirality transfers among different levels are still obscure. Herein, a l -/d -lysine-based self-assembly system was constructed, in which two-step chirality transfer among three different levels was observed in aqueous solution. The chirality originated from the point chirality of amino acid derivatives l -/d -PyLys hydrochloride, and was transferred to the planar conformational chirality of water-soluble pillar[5]arene pR-/pS-WP5. Then, with the aid of pR-/pS-WP5, nanoparticles were formed that exhibited L-/R-handed circularly polarized luminescence with a dissymmetry factor of up to ±0.001, arising from pyrene chiral excimers. This multilevel chirality transfer not only provides a perspective to trace potential clues, and to pursue certain ways by which the chirality transfers, but also offers a strategy to create controllable CPL emission in aqueous media.     

Pyrolysis of Amino Acid Derived Stabilised Ylides as a Route to Chiral Acetylenic Amines and Amino Acids and Gaba Analogues

Abstract

We recently reported the pyrolysis of stabilised ylides as a method for overall conversion of carboxylic acids to homologous acetylenic esters and terminal alkynes.^1,2 This has now been applied successfully to amino acids. A wide range of alkoxycarbonyl protected amino acids have been converted to the stable crystalline ylides 1. These have been fully characterised, and upon FVP, eliminate Ph₃PO to afford the protected acetylenic amino acids 2 in good yield and without significant racemisation. Subsequent reactions of these extremely versatile intermediates have been used to gain access to a wide variety of chiral amine and amino acids of great interest as potential selective enzyme inhibitors and components for modified peptide structures.     

Two New Octulosonic Acid Derivatives and a New Cyclohexanecarboxylic Acid Derivative from Erigeron bonariensis L.

The AcOEt‐soluble part of a MeOH extract from the whole plant of Erigeron bonariensis yielded two new rare‐class octulosonic acid derivatives, rel‐methyl (1R,2S,3S,5R)‐3‐(trans‐caffeoyloxy)‐7‐[(trans‐caffeoyloxy)methyl]‐2‐hydroxy‐6,8‐dioxabicyclo[3.2.1]octane‐5‐carboxylate ( 1 ) and 5,8‐di[O‐trans‐caffeoyl]‐3‐deoxy‐β‐D ‐gluco‐oct‐2‐ulopyranosonosyl 4,8‐di[O‐trans‐caffeoyl]‐3‐deoxy‐β‐D ‐gluco‐oct‐2‐ulopyranosidonic acid ( 2 ) along with a cyclohexanecarboxylic acid derivative, (1α,3β,4β,5β)‐1,4‐di‐3,5‐dihydroxy‐bis(trans‐caffeoyloxy)cyclohexanecarboxylic acid ( 3 ). The structures of these compounds were elucidated through ESI‐MS, and 1D‐ and 2D‐NMR spectroscopic techniques including ¹H‐ and ¹³C‐NMR, HMQC or HSQC, and HMBC experiments.     

Asymmetric Synthesis of an Amino Acid Derivative from Achiral Aroyl Acrylamide by Reversible Michael Addition and Preferential Crystallization

Single‐handed α‐amino acid derivatives were generated from achiral precursors without an external chiral source. Conjugate addition of phenethylamine to an achiral aroyl acrylamide under homogeneous conditions gave the α‐amino amides in quantitative yields, which crystallized as a conglomerate of a P2₁ crystal system. Dynamic preferential crystallization or attrition‐enhanced deracemization resulted in the formation of enantiomorphic crystals of 99 % ee.     

CE-MS Identification of Amino Acid Sequence Inversion as a New Degradation Pathway of an Aspartyl Model Tripeptide

CE-MS was employed to identify two unknown degradation products of the model tripeptide Phe-α-Asp-Gly heated at 80 °C in aqueous solution at pH 7.4. Both compounds displayed essentially identical mass spectra indicating the presence of peptide diastereomers. The [M + H]⁺-ion at m/z 338 suggested a tripeptide composed of the amino acids Phe, Gly and Asp. The fragmentation pattern indicated that Phe was not located at the N-terminus. Subsequently, the linear peptide α-Asp-Phe-Gly and the branched peptide Asp(Gly)-Phe were synthesized and analyzed by CE-MS. The mass spectrum of synthetic α-Asp-Phe-Gly was identical to that of the unknown compounds confirming the structure of the degradation products. Asp(Gly)-Phe displayed a complex fragmentation pattern. In conclusion, amino acid sequence inversion represents another degradation pathway of Phe-α-Asp-Gly at pH 7.4 besides known reactions including isomerization, enantiomerization, cyclization to diketopiperazine derivatives and backbone hydrolysis. The mechanism of the rearrangement of the amino acid sequence is proposed to proceed via an aza-bridged intermediate.

     

Comparison of Two Approaches to Processing Titration Curves of a Dibasic Acid

Two approaches to processing titration curves of dibasic acids based on the use of sets of equations characteristic for dibasic acids and for a mixture of two monobasic acids were compared. With an example of processing of titration curves of glutamic, oxalic, and succinic acids using logarithmic relationships, it was demonstrated that the first approach provides a higher sensitivity to the influence of different factors. Recommendations were given for the use of the studied approaches for solving analytical problems.     

Molecular Recognition of an Amino Acid by a Novel Macrocyclic Monoxo‐tetraamine and Its ZnII Complex

The macrocycle monoxo‐tetraamine, 1,4,8,11‐tetraazacyclotridecane‐5‐one (mota), was found to be extremely efficient in the recognition of the amino acid, glycine (Gl), in aqueous solution. The single‐crystal structure of a five‐coordinated mota‐Zn^II complex is reported. This Zn^II complex acts as host for Gl to form a stable ternary complex. The recognition constants and the recognition mechanism for the binary and ternary complexes are based on potentiometric data.     

Rapid and Mild Synthesis of Amino Acid N‐Carboxy Anhydrides: Basic‐to‐Acidic Flash Switching in a Microflow Reactor

Polymerization of N‐carboxy anhydrides (NCAs) is the primary process used to prepare polypeptides. The synthesis of various pure NCAs is key to the efficient synthesis of polypeptides. The only practical method that can be used to synthesize NCAs requires harsh acidic conditions that make acid‐labile substrates unusable and results in an undesired ring opening of NCAs. Basic‐to‐acidic flash switching and subsequent flash dilution technology in a microflow reactor was used to demonstrate the synthesis of NCAs. It is both rapid (0.1 s) and mild (20 °C) and includes substrates containing acid‐labile functional groups. The basic‐to‐acidic flash switching enabled both an acceleration of the desired NCA formation and avoided the undesired ring opening of NCAs. The flash dilution precluded the undesired decomposition of acid‐labile functional groups. The developed process allowed the synthesis of various NCAs which cannot be readily synthesized using conventional batch methods.     

Insight into the Mechanism of Hydrogenation of Amino Acids to Amino Alcohols Catalyzed by a Heterogeneous MoOx‐Modified Rh Catalyst

Hydrogenation of amino acids to amino alcohols is a promising utilization of natural amino acids. We found that MoO_x‐modified Rh/SiO₂ (Rh–MoO_x/SiO₂) is an efficient heterogeneous catalyst for the reaction at low temperature (323 K) and the addition of a small amount of MoO_x drastically increases the activity and selectivity. Here, we report the catalytic potential of Rh–MoO_x/SiO₂ and the results of kinetic and spectroscopic studies to elucidate the reaction mechanism of Rh–MoO_x/SiO₂ catalyzed hydrogenation of amino acids to amino alcohols. Rh–MoO_x/SiO₂ is superior to previously reported catalysts in terms of activity and substrate scope. This reaction proceeds by direct formation of an aldehyde intermediate from the carboxylic acid moiety, which is different from the reported reaction mechanism. This mechanism can be attributed to the reactive hydride species and substrate adsorption caused by MoO_x modification of Rh metal, which results in high activity, selectivity, and enantioselectivity.