Molecules (Mar 2021)

Insights into the Mechanism and Catalysis of Peptide Thioester Synthesis by Alkylselenols Provide a New Tool for Chemical Protein Synthesis

  • Florent Kerdraon,
  • Gemma Bogard,
  • Benoît Snella,
  • Hervé Drobecq,
  • Muriel Pichavant,
  • Vangelis Agouridas,
  • Oleg Melnyk

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26051386
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 26, no. 5
p. 1386

Abstract

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While thiol-based catalysts are widely employed for chemical protein synthesis relying on peptide thioester chemistry, this is less true for selenol-based catalysts whose development is in its infancy. In this study, we compared different selenols derived from the selenocysteamine scaffold for their capacity to promote thiol–thioester exchanges in water at mildly acidic pH and the production of peptide thioesters from bis(2-sulfanylethyl)amido (SEA) peptides. The usefulness of a selected selenol compound is illustrated by the total synthesis of a biologically active human chemotactic protein, which plays an important role in innate and adaptive immunity.

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