Modular α-Helical Mimetics with Antiviral Activity against Respiratory Syncitial Virus

Nicholas E. Shepherd, Huy N. Hoang, Vishal S. Desai, Éric Letouzé, Paul R. Young, David P. Fairlie

Journal of the American Chemical Society · 2006 · 69 citations · 19 references

Concepts

Abstract

A 13-residue peptide sequence from a respiratory syncitial virus fusion protein was constrained in an alpha-helical conformation by fusing two back-to-back cyclic alpha-turn mimetics. The resulting peptide, Ac-(3-->7; 8-->12)-bicyclo-FP[KDEFD][KSIRD]V-NH(2), was highly alpha-helical in water by CD and NMR spectroscopy, correctly positioning crucial binding residues (F488, I491, V493) on one face of the helix and side chain-side chain linkers on a noninteracting face of the helix. This compound displayed potent activity in both a recombinant fusion assay and an RSV antiviral assay (IC(50) = 36 nM) and demonstrates for the first time that back-to-back modular alpha-helix mimetics can produce functional antagonists of important protein-protein interactions.

References

19