Fmoc-3F-Phe-Arg-NH2 and Fmoc-3F-Phe-Asp-OH dipeptides undergo coassembly to form two-component nanofibril hydrogels. These hydrogels support the viability and growth of NIH 3T3 fibroblast cells. The supramolecular display of Arg and Asp at the nanofibril surface effectively mimics the integrin-binding RGD peptide of fibronectin, without covalent connection between the Arg and Asp functionality.

Stimuli-responsive gate mechanisms offer potential for the controlled passage of payload molecules from a porous carrier vehicle on-demand. We describe a method for the enzyme-mediated release of macromolecular guest molecules from inorganic silica particles coated with a bioactive peptide shell, synthesized precisely by Fmoc chemistry. Specific enzymatic hydrolysis of the peptide shell removes...

Structural modification of the peptide backbone via N-methylation is a powerful tool to modulate the pharmacokinetic profile and biological activity of peptides. Here we describe a rapid and highly efficient microwave(MW)-assisted Fmoc/tBu solid-phase method to prepare short chain N-methyl-rich peptides, using Rink amide p-methylbenzhydrylamine (MBHA) resin as solid-phase support. This method p...

[reaction: see text] Chemical glycopeptide synthesis requires access to gram quantities of glycosylated amino acid building blocks. Hence, the efficiency of synthesis of such building blocks is of great importance. Here, we report a fast and highly efficient synthetic route to Fmoc-protected asparaginyl glycosides from unprotected sugars in three steps with high yields. The glycosylated amino a...

In oncology and neurology the F-radiolabeled glucose analogue 2-deoxy-2-[F]fluoro-D-glucose ([F]FDG) is by far the most commonly employed metabolic imaging agent for positron emission tomography (PET). Herein, we report a novel synthetic route to b-configured mannopyranoside precursors and a chemoselective F-fluoroglycosylation method that employ two b-configured [F]FDG derivatives equipped wit...

Fmoc solid phase peptide synthesis of thioesters for the chemical synthesis of proteins via native chemical ligation is a challenge. We have developed a versatile approach for direct synthesis of peptide thioesters from a solid support utilizing Fmoc chemistry. Peptide thioester synthesis is performed by the formation of a cyclic urethane moiety via a selective reaction of the backbone amide ch...

Immunochemotherapy combines a chemotherapeutic agent with an immune-modulating agent and represents an attractive approach to improve cancer therapy. However, the success of immunochemotherapy is hampered by the lack of a strategy to effectively co-deliver the two therapeutics to the tumours. Here we report the development of a dual-functional, immunostimulatory nanomicellar carrier that is bas...

Microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi and some plants secrete an abundance of suites of low molecular weight, high-affinity iron(iii)-chelating acylated siderophores. The peptide composition of a suite of amphiphilic siderophores generated by a Vibrio species, isolated from oligotrophic open ocean water, contained the same iron(iii)-scavenging polar head group and is attached to a fatty acid. ...

I. General methods All Fmoc-protected natural amino acids were purchased from Advanced Chemtech (Louisville, KY). Fmocperfluorophenylalanine (Fmoc-Z) was purchased from Chem-Impex Int’l Inc.(Wood Dale, IL). Fmoc-Gly-Wang resin was purchased from Novabiochem (San Diego, CA). All other chemicals were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich (Milwaukee, WI). Peptide synthesis was finished on a Tribute peptide...

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) was used to optimize the solid-phase peptide synthesis of a membrane-bound peptide labeled with TOAC (2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperidine-1-oxyl-4-amino-4-carboxylic acid). The incorporation of this paramagnetic amino acid results in a nitroxide spin label coupled rigidly to the alpha-carbon, providing direct detection of peptide backbone dynamics by EPR. We app...