Obesity is a source of significant pathologies and deadly diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. One of the most intriguing strategies in the hunt for new anti-obesity medications is the inhibition of pancreatic lipase (PL). This study presents a novel application of short α and β-mixed peptides as pancreatic lipase inhibitors. These peptides were synthesized in the solution phase and characterized using FTIR and 1H-NMR. L-proline is present in a high percentage of natural anti-lipase peptides and was used as a β-amino acid in this study to enhance anti-lipase activity and proteolytic stability. Moreover, L-α-proline was converted to β-amino acid derivatives using the Arndt-Eistert method with the advantage of stereo control at the α-carbon. The synthesized peptides with anti-lipase activity are N-Boc-β-Pro-Gly-OBz (93%), N-Boc-O-Bz-Tyr-β-Pro-β-Pro-Gly-OBz (92%), N-Boc-O-Bz-Tyr-β-Pro-COOH (91%), N-Boc-Phe-β-Pro-OCH3 (90%), and N-Boc-O-Bz-Tyr-β-Pro-OCH3 (89%). These peptides may function as lead molecules for further modification to more significant molecules, which can help control obesity.
Keywords: Arndt–Eistert method; Wolff rearrangement; lipase; obesity; α and β-hybrid/mixed peptides; β-amino acid.