Laurent Raibaut

Sequential native peptide ligation strategies for total chemical protein synthesis

Total chemical synthesis of proteins is usually achieved by assembling unprotected peptide segments using site-specific and chemoselective native peptide ligation methods. Access to large proteins often requires the assembly of at least three segments due to the current limits of solid phase synthesis of individual peptide segments. The aim of this tutorial review is to present the basic concepts and challenges underlying the design of sequential peptide ligation strategies using solution or solid phase chemistry. A special emphasis is given to C-to-N and N-to-C three-segment assembly strategies, which potentially give access to proteins composed of up to 150 amino acid residues.

One-pot chemical synthesis of small ubiquitin-like modifier protein–peptide conjugates using bis (2-sulfanylethyl)amido peptide latent thioester surrogates

Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) post-translational modification (PTM) of proteins has a crucial role in the regulation of important cellular processes. This protocol describes the chemical synthesis of functional SUMO–peptide conjugates. The two crucial stages of this protocol are the solid-phase synthesis of peptide segments derivatized by thioester or bis(2-sulfanylethyl)amido (SEA) latent thioester functionalities and the one-pot assembly of the SUMO–peptide conjugate by a sequential native chemical ligation (NCL)/SEA native peptide ligation reaction sequence. This protocol also enables the isolation of a SUMO SEA latent thioester, which can be attached to a target peptide or protein in a subsequent step. It is compatible with 9-fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl (Fmoc) chemistry, and it gives access to homogeneous, reversible and functional SUMO conjugates that are not easily produced using living systems. The synthesis of SUMO–peptide conjugates on a milligram scale takes 20 working days.

Highly efficient solid phase synthesis of large polypeptides by iterative ligations of bis(2-sulfanylethyl)amido (SEA) peptide segments

Up to now, the advantages of solid phase protein synthesis have been largely under-utilized due to the difficulty of designing a simple and efficient elongation cycle enabling the concatenation of unprotected peptide segments. The combination of selective N-terminal anchoring (N3-Esoc linker) with the blocked thioester properties of the SEAoff group enabled the solid phase concatenation of unprotected peptide segments by N-to-C sequential formation of native peptide bonds. The strategy was applied to the synthesis of a 60 amino acid-long latent peptide thioester or to the assembly of five peptide segments to give a 15 kDa polypeptide.

Bis(2-sulfanylethyl)amido Peptides Enable Native Chemical Ligation at Proline and Minimize Deletion Side-Product Formation

Native chemical ligation of C-terminal peptidyl prolyl alkylthioesters with N-terminal cysteinyl peptides usually exhibits poor kinetic rates compared to other C-terminal amino acid residues. It is shown here that the reaction is accompanied by the formation of a deletion side product which is minimized by using a bis(2-sulfanylethyl)amido (SEA) thioester surrogate at a mildly acidic pH.

Access to Large Cyclic Peptides by a One-Pot Two-Peptide Segment Ligation/Cyclization Process

The use of the N-acetoacetyl protecting group for N-terminal cysteine residue enabled creation of an efficient and mild one-pot native chemical ligation/SEA ligation sequence giving access to large cyclic peptides.

Selectively Activatable Latent Thiol and Selenolesters Simplify the Access to Cyclic or Branched Peptide Scaffolds

The cyclic dichalcogenides based on the bis(2-chalcogenoethyl)amide structure are latent N,S (SEA, chalcogen = S) or N,Se (SeEA, chalcogen = Se) acyl shift systems. The large difference in the reducing potential between SEA and SeEA dichalcogenides allows their sequential and selective activation by reduction. Based on these concepts, one-pot three or four peptide segment assembly processes were designed, facilitating access to branched or cyclic peptide scaffolds.

A novel PEG-based solid support enables the synthesis of >50 amino-acid peptide thioesters and the total synthesis of a functional SUMO-1 peptide conjugate

A bis(2-sulfanylethyl)amino PEG-based resin enabled the synthesis of large (∼50 Aa) SEA or thioester peptides using Fmoc-SPPS. These peptide segments permitted the first total synthesis of a 97 amino-acid long SUMO-1-SEA peptide thioester surrogate and of a functional and reversible SUMO-1 peptide conjugate.

Tidbits for the synthesis of bis(2-sulfanylethyl)amido (SEA) polystyrene resin, SEA peptides and peptide thioesters†

Protein total chemical synthesis enables the atom‐by‐atom control of the protein structure and therefore has a great potential for studying protein function. Native chemical ligation of C‐terminal peptide thioesters with N‐terminal cysteinyl peptides and related methodologies are central to the field of protein total synthesis. Consequently, methods enabling the facile synthesis of peptide thioesters using Fmoc‐SPPS are of great value. Herein, we provide a detailed protocol for the preparation of bis(2‐sulfanylethyl)amino polystyrene resin as a starting point for the synthesis of C‐terminal bis(2‐sulfanylethyl)amido peptides and of peptide thioesters derived from 3‐mercaptopropionic acid. Copyright

Solid Phase Protein Chemical Synthesis

The chemical synthesis of peptides or small proteins is often an important step in many research projects and has stimulated the development of numerous chemical methodologies. The aim of this review is to give a substantial overview of the solid phase methods developed for the production or purification of polypeptides. The solid phase peptide synthesis (SPPS) technique has facilitated considerably the access to short peptides (<50 amino acids). However, its limitations for producing large homogeneous peptides have stimulated the development of solid phase covalent or non-covalent capture purification methods. The power of the native chemical ligation (NCL) reaction for protein synthesis in aqueous solution has also been adapted to the solid phase by the combination of novel linker technologies, cysteine protection strategies and thioester or N,S-acyl shift thioester surrogate chemistries. This review details pioneering studies and the most recent publications related to the solid phase chemical synthesis of large peptides and proteins.

Selenopeptide transamidation and metathesis.

Selenopeptides can be transamidated by cysteinyl peptides in water using mild conditions (pH 5.5, 37 °C) in the presence of an arylthiol catalyst. Similar conditions also catalyze the metathesis of selenopeptides. The usefulness of the selenophosphine derived from TCEP (TCEP=Se) for inhibiting the TCEP-induced deselenization of selenocysteine residue is also reported.