A mild, practical, and simple procedure for peptide-bond formation is reported. Instead of activation of the carboxylic acid functionality, the reaction involves an unprecedented use of activated α-aminoesters. The method provides a straightforward entry to dipeptides and was effective when a sensitive cysteine residue was used, as no epimerization was detected in this case. The applicability of this method to iterative peptide synthesis was illustrated by the synthesis of a model tetrapeptide in the challenging reverse N→C direction.
Keywords: amides; amino acids; epimerization; peptides; synthetic methods.
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