IChO 1984 · Theory problem 8

Amino acid sequence of a pain-relieving peptide

The sequence of the amino acids in a peptide can be determined by a combination of chemical and enzymatic methods. The peptide in question functions in the human body as a pain reliever.

a) Hydrolysis of the peptide in 6 M \(\ce{HCl}\) at \(110^\circ\mathrm{C}\) followed by an analysis of the liberated amino acids, resulted in a molar ratio of Gly, Leu, and aromatic amino acids Phe, Tyr 2 : 1 : 1 : 1.

b) Reacting the peptide with 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene (DNFB), followed by hydrolysis and chromatographic analysis, yielded the tyrosine derivative.

c) Partial hydrolysis with chymotrypsin yielded Leu, Tyr and a smaller peptide. After hydrolysis of this peptide Gly and Phe were identified in a ratio 2 : 1. Chymotrypsin is a protease which cleaves a peptide bond following an aromatic amino acid.

Problems:

8.1 Determine the amino acid sequence from the given information.

8.2 Write the structural formula of the DNFB- and the dansyl derivative of tyrosine. What is the advantage of the dansylation in comparison to the DNFB-modification?

Dansyl means 5-N,N-dimethylaminonaphtalene-4-sulphonyl.

8.3 In a similar peptide which shows the same biological activity, leucine is replaced by methionine. Explain from the chemical structure of both amino acids why the replacement is possible without loss of biological activity.

Official English text of the problem.

Answers

  • 8.1 The sequence, from the N-terminus to the C-terminus, is Tyr–Gly–Gly–Phe–Leu, called Leu-enkephalin.

SMILES: N[C@@H](Cc1ccc(O)cc1)C(=O)NCC(=O)NCC(=O)N[C@@H](Cc1ccccc1)C(=O)N[C@@H](CC(C)C)C(=O)O

  • 8.2 The N-terminal sequencing derivatives are:

\(N^\alpha\)-(2,4-dinitrophenyl)-L-tyrosine, with a direct bond between the tyrosine amino nitrogen and the dinitrophenyl ring.

SMILES: N(c1ccc([N+](=O)[O-])cc1[N+](=O)[O-])[C@@H](Cc1ccc(O)cc1)C(=O)O

\(N^\alpha\)-dansyl-L-tyrosine, with a sulfonamide linkage. Using the conventional definition of dansyl:

SMILES: CN(C)c1cccc2c(S(=O)(=O)N[C@@H](Cc3ccc(O)cc3)C(=O)O)cccc12

Dansyl derivatives are strongly fluorescent, permitting much more sensitive detection and therefore sequencing with smaller quantities of peptide. The printed dansyl locants are addressed below.

  • 8.3 L-Leucine, N[C@@H](CC(C)C)C(=O)O, and L-methionine, N[C@@H](CCSC)C(=O)O, have uncharged, predominantly hydrophobic side chains of comparable bulk. Their substitution can therefore preserve the interactions required for biological activity.

Solution

8.1 — Determination of the sequence

The amino-acid composition is:

Residue Number in the pentapeptide Free amino acid: name and SMILES
Gly 2 Glycine: NCC(=O)O
Leu 1 L-Leucine: N[C@@H](CC(C)C)C(=O)O
Phe 1 L-Phenylalanine: N[C@@H](Cc1ccccc1)C(=O)O
Tyr 1 L-Tyrosine: N[C@@H](Cc1ccc(O)cc1)C(=O)O

DNFB reacts with the free N-terminal amino group. The identification of its tyrosine derivative after hydrolysis therefore places Tyr at the N-terminus.

Chymotrypsin cleaves on the C-terminal side of an aromatic residue. Here the aromatic residues are Tyr and Phe.

  1. Cleavage immediately after the N-terminal Tyr releases free Tyr.
  2. Free Leu must be the C-terminal residue: an internal Leu could not be released as a single amino acid because this would require cleavage after Leu, contrary to the stated specificity.
  3. Consequently, the bond immediately before the terminal Leu must follow an aromatic residue. Tyr is already at the N-terminus, so this residue is Phe.
  4. The remaining fragment contains two Gly and one Phe. Since Phe must end this fragment, its order is Gly–Gly–Phe.

Thus the cleavage pattern is

\[ \boxed{\mathrm{Tyr}\downarrow\mathrm{Gly-Gly-Phe}\downarrow\mathrm{Leu}}. \]

The smaller peptide is glycylglycyl-L-phenylalanine:

NCC(=O)NCC(=O)N[C@@H](Cc1ccccc1)C(=O)O

Each hydrolysed peptide bond consumes one molecule of water, O. Using sequence abbreviations for peptides with free termini, the balanced enzymatic hydrolysis is

\[ \ce{Tyr-Gly-Gly-Phe-Leu + 2 H2O ->[chymotrypsin] Tyr + Gly-Gly-Phe + Leu}. \]

Hydrolysis of the smaller peptide gives

\[ \ce{Gly-Gly-Phe + 2 H2O -> 2 Gly + Phe}, \]

in agreement with the observed \(2:1\) ratio. Complete hydrolysis of the original peptide breaks four peptide bonds:

\[ \ce{Tyr-Gly-Gly-Phe-Leu + 4 H2O ->[HCl,\ 110 ^\circ C] Tyr + 2 Gly + Phe + Leu}. \]

These balances use neutral molecular forms; the amino groups are protonated in the strongly acidic hydrolysis mixture.

8.2 — Structures and advantage of dansylation

Let \(R\) denote the tyrosine side chain,

\[ R=\ce{CH2-C6H4-OH}, \]

with the phenolic \(\ce{OH}\) para to the \(\ce{CH2}\) group.

DNFB derivative. The reagent is 1-fluoro-2,4-dinitrobenzene, Fc1ccc([N+](=O)[O-])cc1[N+](=O)[O-].

The amino nitrogen replaces fluorine by nucleophilic aromatic substitution. The neutral-form reaction is

\[ \ce{H2N-CH(R)-COOH + F-C6H3(NO2)2 -> (NO2)2C6H3-NH-CH(R)-COOH + HF}. \]

The formal by-product is hydrogen fluoride, F; base neutralizes it during derivatization.

To draw the product, attach the tyrosine amino nitrogen directly to carbon 1 of a benzene ring bearing nitro groups at positions 2 and 4. The nitrogen retains one hydrogen, and the tyrosine phenolic hydroxyl remains present in this \(N^\alpha\)-labelled structure.

Dansyl derivative. Conventional dansyl chloride, or 5-(dimethylamino)naphthalene-1-sulfonyl chloride, has SMILES:

CN(C)c1cccc2c(S(=O)(=O)Cl)cccc12

The amino nitrogen replaces chlorine at sulfur, forming a sulfonamide:

\[ \ce{H2N-CH(R)-COOH + (CH3)2N-C10H6-SO2Cl -> (CH3)2N-C10H6-SO2-NH-CH(R)-COOH + HCl}. \]

The formal by-product is hydrogen chloride, Cl, which is likewise neutralized by base.

To draw conventional dansyltyrosine, place the dimethylamino group at naphthalene carbon 5 and the sulfonyl group at carbon 1. The latter has two \(\ce{S=O}\) bonds and an \(\ce{S-NH}\) bond to the tyrosine amino nitrogen.

In peptide sequencing, these reactions label the N-terminal nitrogen while the residue is still part of the peptide. Subsequent hydrolysis releases the labelled amino acid.

The advantage of dansylation is its strong fluorescence, allowing detection at much lower concentrations than the coloured dinitrophenyl derivatives.

The statement instead specifies 5-(dimethylamino)naphthalene-4-sulphonyl. Taken literally, this gives a different positional isomer, with the two substituents in peri positions. The corresponding \(N^\alpha\)-[5-(dimethylamino)naphthalene-4-sulfonyl]-L-tyrosine is:

CN(C)c1cccc2cccc(S(=O)(=O)N[C@@H](Cc3ccc(O)cc3)C(=O)O)c12

8.3 — Why methionine can replace leucine

The side chains are

\[ \begin{aligned} \text{Leucine:}&\qquad \ce{-CH2-CH(CH3)2},\\ \text{Methionine:}&\qquad \ce{-CH2-CH2-S-CH3}. \end{aligned} \]

Both are flexible, predominantly hydrophobic groups of comparable size. Methionine contains an uncharged thioether, which does not introduce a charged side chain.

The substitution preserves the peptide backbone and can maintain similar hydrophobic contacts at the receptor. Thus it is chemically reasonable that replacing the terminal leucine with methionine retains the pain-relieving activity.

The solution was checked against the official solution.