At the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, scientists have for the first time synthesized an amino acid that can form the structure of active peptides and increase their effectiveness. The experiment showed that when an amino acid is introduced into biologically active peptides, its effectiveness can be increased by more than 40 times. With this result, a series of new drugs are expected to be developed.
The corresponding papers are published in the journal Nature chemistry. Currently, drugs mainly consist of two types of substances, one of which is a polypeptide substance of natural origin, and the other is a protein. Although there are many types of peptides and proteinsProteins are high-molecular organic substances consisting of alpha-amino acids linked in a chain by a peptide bond. In living organisms, the amino acid composition of proteins is determined by the genetic code. During synthesis, 20 standard amino acids are used in most cases. Many combinations of them determine the great diversity of properties of protein molecules. Proteins play a key role in the immune response and can perform transport, storage, catalytic, structural, and receptor functions. Proteins are an important part of the nutrition of animals and humans. The main sources of proteins are meat, poultry, fish, milk, nuts, legumes, and grains., there are only 20 types of natural amino acidsAmino acids are the fundamental building blocks of proteins and play a key role in biological processes. There are a total of 22 standard amino acids used for protein synthesis in living organisms.. Each amino acid has a different structure and chemical properties, and the combination of different amino acids has led to different properties and functions of peptides and proteins. Until recently, the vast majority of amino acid-based drugs were also used in the original nature of amino acids, such as hormonesHormones are biologically active substances that are produced by specialized cells or glands (such as endocrine glands) and regulate various physiological processes in the body. They act as chemical signals that are transmitted through the bloodstream to organs and tissues to control and coordinate a wide range of functions, including metabolism, growth and development, reproduction, mood, and more. Examples include insulin, testosterone, estrogen, and adrenaline., insulin, antibiotics, cyclosporine, etc..
However, due to the emergence of many new diseases and the evolution of the original bacteria, viruses, scientists need to develop new, more effective drugs. One of the ways to meet this demand is directed evolution, i.e. modeling the development of nature in the laboratory and developing new peptides and proteins.
At the Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Christian Hines led a research team to develop the synthesis of an amino acid whose unique structure can significantly increase the therapeutic effectiveness of peptides and proteins. This synthetic amino acid is very similar to the natural amino acid known as cysteine. Cysteine, like other natural amino acids, does not have a sulfur group, which allows it to combine with other cysteine to form a new structure, thereby affecting the functions of peptides and proteins. For the first time, the researchers developed 5 similar amino acids of cysteine, and integrated them into the structure of two types of bioactive peptides, one of which can inhibit cancer-related enzymesEnzymes are proteins that accelerate chemical reactions in the body. They ensure the occurrence of metabolic processes such as food digestion, energy release, cell formation, and many others., the other-block neuronal receptors..
Tests have shown that compared with traditional drugs, the activity of the new drug is almost 40 times higher. Hayes said: ‘This is very surprising. Usually, if you touch natural molecules, you can only make it worse. In this case, we found that, on the contrary, we get the desired results.’ In the course of our research, we found that the diversity of the structure of the peptideA peptide is a molecule consisting of a chain of amino acids linked together by peptide bonds. Peptides are shorter chains than proteins and usually contain from 2 to 50 amino acids. When the number of amino acids in a chain exceeds 50, such molecules are called proteins. Peptides can perform various functions in the body, including: Hormones, Neuropeptides, Antibiotics, Antioxidants library is the key to achieving a good combination and better results.’ With this new amino acid, you can create very diverse peptide structures.’
It is believed that bicyclic peptides can replace small molecules or antibodies used in conventional drugs for the treatment of diseases. New therapeutic peptides will play an important role in drug development in the future. Hayes says that they have developed the use of bicyclic peptides to create drugs for treating various diseases, and the next step is to use this new amino acid in directed evolutionary experiments.
