TUMCS | Thomas Höfer | 01.03.2021
Priscila receives a Kékule Fellowship from the Verband der Chemischen Industrie e.V. for the development of the electrosynthesis of peptides. With this fascinating project, she will enrich the group with another field of research.
Priscila Seveur
Peptide synthesis is gaining importance in the development of therapeutic and diagnostic devices. Current methods for both development and large-scale production are well established for peptides based on natural amino acids. However, the incorporation of unnatural amino acids into peptides and proteins to improve these substances or confer novel properties is still a challenge. Here, electrochemical peptide synthesis is a possible solution to facilitate the incorporation of unnatural amino acids into the peptide chain.
The coupling of amino acids takes place in a hydrogel. This prevents possible aggregation on the one hand and unhindered transport of electrons on the other. In combination with these electrons, which are used to control the chemical reactions, the approach enables a high and pure yield under mild conditions. In addition, production can be carried out directly on a chip (electrode microarray). So the production can be followed by a direct measurement of the activity of the peptide. This involves direct evolution of the artificial peptides.