Effects of chirality and side chain length in C alpha , alpha-dialkylated residues on beta-hairpin peptide folded structure and stability.
Heath, S.L., Horne, W.S., Lengyel, G.A.(2023) Org Biomol Chem 21: 6320-6324
- PubMed: 37503895 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/d3ob00963g
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
8T0G, 8T0H, 8T0I - PubMed Abstract: 
Strategic incorporation of achiral C α,α -dialkylated amino acids with bulky substituents into peptides can be used to promote extended strand conformations and inhibit protein-protein interactions associated with amyloid formation. In this work, we evaluate the thermodynamic impact of chiral C α,α monomers on folding preferences in such systems through introduction of a series of C α -methylated and C α -ethylated residues into a β-hairpin host sequence. Depending on stereochemical configuration of the artificial monomer and potential for additional hydrophobic packing, a C α -ethyl-C α -propyl glycine residue can provide similar or enhanced folded stability relative to an achiral C α,α -diethyl analogue.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Department of Chemistry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.