Rapid sequencing of split-and-mix peptide receptor libraries - Identification of binding partners for Val-Val-Ile-Ala in aqueous solution

Split-and-mix peptide libraries have been encoded by capping cleavable, laddered sequences with p-bromobenzoic acid, allowing rapid analysis of the cleaved ladder fragments by mass spectrometry. The encoding methodology has been applied to the synthesis of libraries of peptide receptors and a library of tripeptides functionalised with a bicyclic guanidinium unit has been successfully screened to identify binding partners for Val-Val-Ile-Ala, the C-terminal tetrapeptide sequence of the amyloid-beta protein, A beta(1-42). ((C) Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2007).