Synthesis of l‐ and d‐Ubiquitin by One‐Pot Ligation and Metal‐Free Desulfurization

Native chemical ligation combined with desulfurization has become a powerful strategy for the chemical synthesis of proteins. Here we describe the use of a new thiol additive, methyl thioglycolate, to accomplish one‐pot native chemical ligation and metal‐free desulfurization for chemical protein synthesis. This one‐pot strategy was used to prepare ubiquitin from two or three peptide segments. Circular dichroism spectroscopy and racemic protein X‐ray crystallography confirmed the correct folding of ubiquitin. Our results demonstrate that proteins synthesized chemically by streamlined 9‐fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl (Fmoc) solid‐phase peptide synthesis coupled with a one‐pot ligation–desulfurization strategy can supply useful molecules with sufficient purity for crystallographic studies.     

Cysteine/Penicillamine Ligation Independent of Terminal Steric Demands for Chemical Protein Synthesis

The chemical ligation of two unprotected peptides to generate a natural peptidic linkage specifically at the C‐ and N‐termini is a desirable goal in chemical protein synthesis but is challenging because it demands high reactivity and selectivity (chemo‐, regio‐, and stereoselectivity). We report an operationally simple and highly effective chemical peptide ligation involving the ligation of peptides with C‐terminal salicylaldehyde esters to peptides with N‐terminal cysteine/penicillamine. The notable features of this method include its tolerance of steric hinderance from the side groups on either ligating terminus, thereby allowing flexible disconnection at sites that are otherwise difficult to functionalize. In addition, this method can be expanded to selective desulfurization and one‐pot ligation‐desulfurization reactions. The effectiveness of this method was demonstrated by the synthesis of VISTA (216‐311), PD‐1 (192‐288) and Eglin C.     

P−B Desulfurization: An Enabling Method for Protein Chemical Synthesis and Site‐Specific Deuteration

Cysteine‐mediated native chemical ligation is a powerful method for protein chemical synthesis. Herein, we report an unprecedentedly mild system (TCEP/NaBH₄ or TCEP/LiBEt₃H; TCEP=tris(2‐carboxyethyl)phosphine) for chemoselective peptide desulfurization to achieve effective protein synthesis via the native chemical ligation–desulfurization approach. This method, termed P−B desulfurization, features usage of common reagents, simplicity of operation, robustness, high yields, clean conversion, and versatile functionality compatibility with complex peptides/proteins. In addition, this method can be used for incorporating deuterium into the peptides after cysteine desulfurization by running the reaction in D₂O buffer. Moreover, this method enables the clean desulfurization of peptides carrying post‐translational modifications, such as phosphorylation and crotonylation. The effectiveness of this method has been demonstrated by the synthesis of the cyclic peptides dichotomin C and E and synthetic proteins, including ubiquitin, γ‐synuclein, and histone H2A.     

An Iron-Catalyzed Protein Desulfurization Method Reminiscent of Aquatic Chemistry

One pillar of protein chemical synthesis based on the application of ligation chemistries to cysteine is the group of reactions enabling the selective desulfurization of cysteine residues into alanines. Modern desulfurization reactions use a phosphine as a sink for sulfur under activation conditions involving the generation of sulfur-centered radicals. Here we show that cysteine desulfurization by a phosphine can be effected efficiently by micromolar concentrations of iron under aerobic conditions in hydrogen carbonate buffer, that is using conditions that are reminiscent of iron-catalyzed oxidation phenomena occurring in natural waters. Therefore, our work shows that chemical processes taking place in aquatic systems can be adapted to a chemical reactor for triggering a complex chemoselective transformation at the protein level, while minimizing the resort to harmful chemicals.     

Aziridine‐Mediated Ligation at Phenylalanine and Tryptophan Sites

An efficient approach towards peptide synthesis that allows easy access to variety of small peptides via one‐pot aziridine‐mediated ligation/desulfurization strategy has been described. The protocol afforded a library of phenylalanine‐ and tryptophan‐containing α‐peptides in good yields by regioselective ring‐opening of aziridine‐3‐aryl‐2‐carboxylates with peptide thioacids, followed by desulfurization.     

Imidazole‐Aided Native Chemical Ligation: Imidazole as a One‐Pot Desulfurization‐Amenable Non‐Thiol‐Type Alternative to 4‐Mercaptophenylacetic Acid

Various bioactive proteins have been synthesized by native chemical ligation (NCL) and its combination with subsequent desulfurization (e.g., conversion from Cys to Ala). In NCL, excess 4‐mercaptophenylacetic acid (MPAA) is generally added to facilitate the reaction. However, co‐elution of MPAA with the ligation product during preparative high‐performance liquid chromatography sometimes reduces its usefulness. In addition, contamination of MPAA disturbs subsequent desulfurization. Here, we report for the first time that imidazole can be adopted as an alternative to MPAA in NCL using a peptide‐alkylthioester. The efficiency of the imidazole‐aided NCL (Im‐NCL) is similar to that of traditional MPAA‐aided NCL. As model cases, we successfully synthesized adiponectin(19‐107) and [Ser(PO₃H₂)⁶⁵]‐ubiquitin using Im‐NCL with a one‐pot desulfurization.     

Selective desulfurization of cysteine in the presence of Cys(Acm) in polypeptides obtained by native chemical ligation

Increased versatility for the synthesis of proteins and peptides by native chemical ligation requires the ability to ligate at positions other than Cys. Here, we report that Raney nickel can be used under standard conditions for the selective desulfurization of Cys in the presence of Cys(Acm). This simple and practical tactic enables the more common Xaa-Ala junctions to be used as ligation sites for the chemical synthesis of Cys-containing peptides and proteins. [reaction: see text].     

Synthesis of peptides and proteins without cysteine residues by native chemical ligation combined with desulfurization.

The highly chemoselective reaction between unprotected peptides bearing an N-terminal Cys residue and a C-terminal thioester enables the total and semi-synthesis of complex polypeptides. Here we extend the utility of this native chemical ligation approach to non-cysteine containing peptides. Since alanine is a common amino acid in proteins, ligation at this residue would be of great utility. To achieve this goal, a specific alanine residue in the parent protein is replaced with cysteine to facilitate synthesis by native chemical ligation. Following ligation, selective desulfurization of the resulting unprotected polypeptide product with H(2)/metal reagents converts the cysteine residue to alanine. This approach, which provides a general method to prepare alanyl proteins from their cysteinyl forms, can be used to chemically synthesize a variety of polypeptides, as demonstrated by the total chemical syntheses of the cyclic antibiotic microcin J25, the 56-amino acid streptococcal protein G B1 domain, and a variant of the 110-amino acid ribonuclease, barnase.     

Parallel Chemical Protein Synthesis on a Surface Enables the Rapid Analysis of the Phosphoregulation of SH3 Domains

Analysis of postranslationally modified protein domains is complicated by an availability problem, as recombinant methods rarely allow site‐specificity at will. Although total synthesis enables full control over posttranslational and other modifications, chemical approaches are limited to shorter peptides. To solve this problem, we herein describe a method that combines a) immobilization of N‐terminally thiolated peptide hydrazides by hydrazone ligation, b) on‐surface native chemical ligation with self‐purified peptide thioesters, c) radical‐induced desulfurization, and d) a surface‐based fluorescence binding assay for functional characterization. We used the method to rapidly investigate 20 SH3 domains, with a focus on their phosphoregulation. The analysis suggests that tyrosine phosphorylation of SH3 domains found in Abl kinases act as a switch that can induce both the loss and, unexpectedly, gain of affinity for proline‐rich ligands.     

多肽酰肼连接法合成C端香豆素修饰的泛素

C端用香豆素修饰的泛素分子（Ub-AMC）是研究蛋白质泛素化过程的重要探针.该探针分子的制备目前主要依靠生物表达结合化学修饰的方法,合成效率较低.本文使用多肽酰肼连接反应,发展出化学全合成Ub-AMC分子的新路线.该方法通过N到C顺序两次连接实现了目标分子的组装,再通过自由基脱硫反应得到天然结构的Ub-AMC分子,有望实现较大量的合成.通过酶学活性实验,证实了通过新方法合成的Ub-AMC具有预期的生物活性.     

Chemical synthesis of Ub-AMC via ligation of peptide hydrazides

The C-terminal conjugate of ubiquitin with 7-amino-4-methylcoumarin (Ub-AMC) is an important probe for fluorescencebased analysis of deubiquitinating enzyme (DUB) activity. It is important to develop more efficient methods for the preparation of Ub-AMC because the currently available technology is still expensive for scaled-up production. In the present work we report an efficient strategy for total chemical synthesis of Ub-AMC through ligation of peptide hydrazides. Three peptide segments are assembled via N-to-C sequential ligation and the resulting product is converted to Ub-AMC via TCEP-mediated desulfurization. The synthetic Ub-AMC is shown to have expected biological functions throug     

Traceless Purification and Desulfurization of Tau Protein Ligation Products

We present a novel strategy for the traceless purification and synthetic modification of peptides and proteins obtained by native chemical ligation. The strategy involves immobilization of a photocleavable semisynthetic biotin–protein conjugate on streptavidin‐coated agarose beads, which eliminates the need for tedious rebuffering steps and allows the rapid removal of excess peptides and additives. On‐bead desulfurization is followed by delivery of the final tag‐free protein product. The strategy is demonstrated in the isolation of a tag‐free Alzheimer's disease related human tau protein from a complex EPL mixture as well as a triphosphorylated peptide derived from the C‐terminus of tau.     

Substituent effect on the efficiency of desulfurizative rearrangement of allylic disulfides

Crich ligation is a new method for the functionalization of peptides and proteins under mild conditions. To more fully understand the mechanism of the ligation and to explore the effect of substitution on its efficiency, a systematic theoretical study is carried out for the first time. It is found that the MP2 method wrongly predicts the substituent effect whereas the ONIOM(CCSD(T):B3LYP) method overestimates the free energy barriers by ca. 4 kcal/mol. Only the ONIOM(G3B3:B3LYP) method is found to be reliable as well as feasible for studying the ligation. The rate-limiting step of the ligation is found to be the [2,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement of the alkyl allyl disulfide, followed by an S N2 phosphine-mediated desulfurization. The S-S bond is significantly polarized during the rearrangement and, therefore, the reaction proceeds more rapidly in polar solvents. R S and R 3 substitutions elevate the free energy barrier of the ligation, whereas the R 2 substitution does not exert a useful effect. Only the substitution at R 1 can effectively reduce the free energy barrier of the reaction to less than 20 kcal/mol (a value required to allow the reaction to complete in minutes at 25 degrees C). Therefore, secondary and tertiary allyl alkyl disulfides can undergo the ligation at the room temperature. Marcus theory analysis indicates that the major factor for the retardation of the reaction by substituents at R S and R 3 and for the acceleration by substituents at R 1 is the thermodynamic equilibrium between the disulfide and thiosulfoxide. To shift the equilibrium to favor the ligation, placement of substituents at R 1 is obligatory for alkyl allyl disulfides. Nonetheless, alkyl buta-2,3-dienyl disulfides may also undergo the ligation at room temperature without the help of the R 1 substituent.     

Traceless and site-specific ubiquitination of recombinant proteins

Protein ubiquitination is a post-translational modification that regulates almost all aspects of eukaryotic biology. Here we discover the first routes for the efficient site-specific incorporation of δ-thiol-L-lysine (7) and δ-hydroxy-L-lysine (8) into recombinant proteins, via evolution of a pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNA(CUA) pair. We combine the genetically directed incorporation of 7 with native chemical ligation and desulfurization to yield an entirely native isopeptide bond between substrate proteins and ubiquitin. We exemplify this approach by demonstrating the synthesis of a ubiquitin dimer and the first synthesis of ubiquitinated SUMO.     

Controlling Peptide Self‐Assembly through a Native Chemical Ligation/Desulfurization Strategy

Self‐assembled peptides were synthesized by using a native chemical ligation (NCL)/desulfurization strategy that maintained the chemical diversity of the self‐assembled peptides. Herein, we employed oxo‐ester‐mediated NCL reactions to incorporate cysteine, a cysteine‐based dipeptide, and a sterically hindered unnatural amino acid (penicillamine) into peptides. Self‐assembly of the peptides resulted in the formation of self‐supporting gels. Microscopy analysis indicated the formation of helical nanofibers, which were responsible for the formation of gel matrices. The self‐assembly of the ligated peptides was governed by covalent and non‐covalent interactions, as confirmed by FTIR, CD, fluorescence spectroscopy, and MS (ESI) analyses. Peptide disassembly was induced by desulfurization reactions with tris(2‐carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP) and glutathione at 80 °C. Desulfurization reactions of the ligated peptides converted the Cys and penicillamine functionalities into Ala and Val moieties, respectively. The self‐supporting gels showed significant shear‐thinning and thixotropic properties.     

Efficient Palladium‐Assisted One‐Pot Deprotection of (Acetamidomethyl)Cysteine Following Native Chemical Ligation and/or Desulfurization To Expedite Chemical Protein Synthesis

The acetamidomethyl (Acm) moiety is a widely used cysteine protecting group for the chemical synthesis and semisynthesis of peptide and proteins. However, its removal is not straightforward and requires harsh reaction conditions and additional purification steps before and after the removal step, which extends the synthetic process and reduces the overall yield. To overcome these shortcomings, a method for rapid and efficient Acm removal using Pd^II complexes in aqueous medium is reported. We show, for the first time, the assembly of three peptide fragments in a one‐pot fashion by native chemical ligation where the Acm moiety was used to protect the N‐terminal Cys of the middle fragment. Importantly, an efficient synthesis of the ubiquitin‐like protein UBL‐5, which contains two native Cys residues, was accomplished through the one‐pot operation of three key steps, namely ligation, desulfurization, and Acm deprotection, highlighting the great utility of the new approach in protein synthesis.     

Ni supported on activated carbon as catalyst for flue gas desulfurization

A series of Ni supported on activated carbon are prepared by excessive impregnation and the desulfurization activity is investigated. It has been shown that the activated carbon-supported Ni is an efficient solid catalyst for flue gas desulfurization. The activated carbon treated by HNO3 exhibits high desulfurization activity, and different amounts of loaded-Ni on activated carbon significantly influence the desulfurization activity. The catalysts are studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectr...     

Sugar-assisted ligation in glycoprotein synthesis

Sugar-assisted ligation (SAL) presents an attractive strategy for the synthesis of glycopeptides, including the synthesis of cysteine-free beta-O-linked and N-linked glycopeptides. Here we extended the utility of SAL for the synthesis of alpha-O-linked glycopeptides and glycoproteins. In order to explore SAL in the context of glycoprotein synthesis, we developed a new chemical synthetic route for the alpha-O-linked glycoprotein diptericin epsilon. In the first stage of our synthesis, diptericin segment Cys(Acm)37-Gly(52) and segment Val(53)-Phe(82) were assembled by SAL through a Gly-Val ligation junction. Subsequently, after Acm deprotection, diptericin segment Cys(37)-Phe(82) was ligated to segment Asp(1)-Asn(36) by means of native chemical ligation (NCL) to give the full sequence of diptericin epsilon. In the final synthetic step, hydrogenolysis was applied to remove the thiol handle from the sugar moiety with the concomitant conversion of mutated Cys(37) into the native alanine residue. In addition, we extended the applicability of SAL to the synthesis of glycopeptides containing cysteine residues by carrying out selective desulfurization of the sulfhydryl-modified sugar moiety in the presence of acetamidomethyl (Acm) protected cysteine residues. The results presented here demonstrated for the first time that SAL could be a general and useful tool in the chemical synthesis of glycoproteins.     

噻吩在Au_(13)和Pt_(13)团簇上加氢脱硫的反应机理比较

采用密度泛函理论研究了噻吩在立方正八面体的M_(13)(M=Au、Pt)团簇上的吸附和加氢脱硫行为。结果表明,噻吩以环吸附于Au_(13)上的Hol-tri位或Pt_(13)上的Hol-quadr位时最稳定,且Pt_(13)上的吸附稳定性更高。在M_(13)催化体系中,按间接加氢脱硫机理,反应可能依顺式加氢的方式进行;其中,C-S键断裂开环所需的活化能最高,是反应的限速步骤;按直接加氢脱硫机理,HS加氢所需活化能最高,是反应的限速步骤。同时该机理总体所需活化能较间接加氢脱硫机理更低,是更为合理的脱硫机理。噻吩加氢脱硫过程中,Au_(13)体系为放热反应,而Pt_(13)体系为吸热反应,并且Au_(13)体系加氢所需活化能更低;因此,Au_(13)更有利于噻吩加氢脱硫反应的进行。     

相转移催化剂对催化柴油氧化脱硫作用的数学模型

经过顺序氧化反应动力学方程、相转移催化剂强化作用数学模型方程和萃取相平衡方程的推导,确定了催化柴油氧化萃取脱硫数学模型方程。研究表明,呈指数函数形式的相转移催化剂作用数学模型具有较高的计算精度。通过模型参数估值确定了氧化速率常数的频率因子和活化能、相平衡常数、相转移催化剂作用模型参数,建立了脱硫率数学模型。模型预测显示,柴油脱硫率随着氧化时间延长呈先提高后降低的趋势;氧化时间较短时,柴油脱硫率随相转移催化剂用量提高而增大,但氧化时间较长时的情况相反;柴油脱硫率随着氧化溶液体积分数增大或萃取剂与油比增大均呈提高的趋势。