Application of capillary reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography to high-sensitivity protein sequence analysis.

A continuous gradient elution method for capillary column (less than 0.32 mm I.D.) liquid chromatography was developed. Gradient eluent from a microbore liquid chromatograph was split ahead of the injector so that an accurate percentage (2-3%) of the mobile phase delivered by the pump flowed through the capillary column. The outlet of the column was connected to a length of 0.075 mm I.D. fused-silica capillary tubing which, in turn, was connected to a 6-mm optical path length longitudinal capillary flow cell. Fused-silica capillary columns of 0.32 mm I.D. were slurry-packed efficiently with 7-microns spherical, 300 A pore size, C8 bonded-phase particles, and evaluated in terms of their ability to resolve mixtures of proteins, peptides or phenylthiohydantoin (PTH)-amino acid derivatives. The gradient elution profiles agreed with those obtained using microbore (less than 2.1 mm I.D.) and larger bore columns. The minimum detectable amounts for proteins and PTH-amino acids on 0.32 mm I.D. capillary columns were 50 pg and 25 fmol, respectively. At a flow-rate of 3.6 microliters/min, proteins and peptides were recovered from the capillary columns in volumes of about 2-8 microliters. The use of a multiple-wavelength, forward-optics detector for identifying tryptophan- and tyrosine-containing peptides is discussed.     

Formation and isomerisation of theO-sulphito complex of 1,4,7,10,13-penta-azacyclohexadecanecobalt(III)

Summary Dissolved SO₂ reacts rapidly with [Co([16]aneN₅)OH]²⁺ to give [Co([16]aneN₅OSO₂]⁺([16]aneN₅=1,4,7,10, 13-penta-azacyclohexadecane), which on immediate acidification loses SO₂ to give [Co([16]aneN₅)OH₂]³⁺. The O-bonded sulphito complex (_max 526 nm) undergoes a slow linkage isomerisation to give the S-bonded species [Co([16]aneN₅)SO₃]⁺ (_max 466 nm), rather than an internal redox reaction. The S-bonded complex has been isolated and characterised as the perchlorate salt [Co([16]aneN₅) (SO₃H)](ClO₄)₂.     

A new perspective on beta-sheet structures using vibrational Raman optical activity: from poly(L-lysine) to the prion protein

The vibrational Raman optical activity (ROA) spectrum of a polypeptide in a model beta-sheet conformation, that of poly(l-lysine), was measured for the first time, and the alpha-helix --> beta-sheet transition monitored as a function of temperature in H(2)O and D(2)O. Although no significant population of a disordered backbone state was detected at intermediate temperatures, some side chain bands not present in either the alpha-helix or beta-sheet state were observed. The observation of ROA bands in the extended amide III region assigned to beta-turns suggests that, under our experimental conditions, beta-sheet poly(L-lysine) contains up-and-down antiparallel beta-sheets based on the hairpin motif. The ROA spectrum of beta-sheet poly(L-lysine) was compared with ROA data on a number of native proteins containing different types of beta-sheet. Amide I and amide II ROA band patterns observed in beta-sheet poly(L-lysine) are different from those observed in typical beta-sheet proteins and may be characteristic of an extended flat multistranded beta-sheet, which is unlike the more irregular and twisted beta-sheet found in most proteins. However, a reduced isoform of the truncated ovine prion protein PrP(94-233) that is rich in beta-sheet shows amide I and amide II ROA bands similar to those of beta-sheet poly(L-lysine), which suggests that the C-terminal domain of the prion protein is able to support unusually flat beta-sheets. A principal component analysis (PCA) that identifies protein structural types from ROA band patterns provides a useful representation of the structural relationships among the polypeptide and protein states considered in the study.     

Enantioselective synthesis of epoxides by alpha-deprotonation--electrophile trapping of achiral epoxides

Enantioselective alpha-deprotonation of achiral epoxides 1, 21, and 26 using organolithiums in the presence of (-)-sparteine 2 and subsequent electrophile trapping gives access to enantioenriched trisubstituted epoxides 9-17, 22, 23, 27 and 28 (in up to 86% ee).     

First in vitro directed biosynthesis of new compounds by a minimal type II polyketide synthase: evidence for the mechanism of chain length determination

The minimal actinorhodin polyketide synthase bearing two point mutations (KSbeta Q161A, ACP C17S) was chemically modified to carry novel C4 to C8 starter units on the ACP: on incubation with an excess of malonyl CoA new 16-carbon polyketides are made, supporting a measuring mechanism.     

A study of alpha-helix hydration in polypeptides, proteins, and viruses using vibrational raman optical activity

A vibrational Raman optical activity (ROA) study, supplemented by protein X-ray crystal structure data, of alpha-helices in polypeptides, proteins, and viruses has suggested that ROA bands in the extended amide III spectral region may be used to distinguish between two types of right-handed alpha-helix. One type, associated with a positive ROA band at approximately 1300 cm(-1), dominates in hydrophobic environments and appears to be unhydrated; the other, associated with a positive ROA band at approximately 1340 cm(-1), dominates in hydrophilic environments and appears to be hydrated. Evidence is presented to support the hypothesis that unhydrated alpha-helix corresponds to the canonical conformation alpha(c) and hydrated alpha-helix to a more open conformation alpha(o) stabilized by hydrogen bonding of a water molecule or a hydrophilic side chain to the peptide carbonyl. Alpha-helical poly(L-lysine) and poly(L-ornithine) in aqueous solution and poly(L-alanine) in dichloracetic acid display both bands, but alpha-helical poly(l-glutamic acid) in aqueous solution and poly(gamma-benzyl L-glutamate) in CHCl(3) display only the approximately 1340 cm(-1) band and so may exist purely as alpha(o) due to enhanced stabilization of this conformation by particular side chain characteristics. The ROA spectrum of poly(beta-benzyl L-aspartate) in CHCl(3) reveals that it exists in a single left-handed alpha-helical state more analogous to alpha(o) than to alpha(c).