A Peptoid with Extended Shape in Water

J Am Chem Soc. 2019 Sep 18;141(37):14612-14623. doi: 10.1021/jacs.9b04371. Epub 2019 Aug 23.

Abstract

The term "peptoids" was introduced decades ago to describe peptide analogues that exhibit better physicochemical and pharmacokinetic properties than peptides. Oligo(N-substituted glycine) (oligo-NSG) was previously proposed as a peptoid due to its high proteolytic resistance and membrane permeability. However, oligo-NSG is conformationally flexible, and ensuring a defined shape in water is difficult. This conformational flexibility severely limits the biological application of oligo-NSG. Here, we propose oligo(N-substituted alanine) (oligo-NSA) as a peptoid that forms a defined shape in water. The synthetic method established in this study enabled the first isolation and conformational study of optically pure oligo-NSA. Computational simulations, crystallographic studies, and spectroscopic analysis demonstrated the well-defined extended shape of oligo-NSA realized by backbone steric effects. This new class of peptoid achieves the constrained conformation without any assistance of N-substituents and serves as a scaffold for displaying functional groups in well-defined three-dimensional space in water, which leads to effective biomolecular recognition.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Crystallography, X-Ray
  • Molecular Dynamics Simulation
  • Peptoids / chemistry*
  • Protein Conformation
  • Quantum Theory
  • Water / chemistry*

Substances

  • Peptoids
  • Water