• Synthesis of new pseudopeptides for the formation of secondary
structures.
• Analysis of the behaviour of small oligomers in solution and in
the solid state for the formation of supramolecular
materials.
• Synthesis andapplication of new catalysts for the
organocatalysis.
We synthesize and study the
properties of synthetic molecules that belong to the family of
peptidomimetics. Recently, the research field of peptides has
included peptidomimetics that are synthetic compounds able to mimic
the shape and the function of natural peptides, although they
contain different functional groups and/or have a different
chemical structure. These compounds are also called "foldamers", as
they are able to self-organize, thus forming secondary structures,
such as helixes or sheets. These molecules can be tested as new
drugs, as they are unchanged in living cells for longer times than
natural peptides.
We are studying the synthesis and
the properties of hetero-oligomers containing natural or synthetic
amino acids: they can be linear or cyclic, thus mimicking secondary
structures, such as helixes, turns or sheets. These compounds can
act also as molecular receptors of metal cation, such as calcium or
magnesium. More recently we have observed that some classes of
oligomers tend to assume an ordered structure in the solid state,
thus forming fibres and fibrils that can be observed with the
microscope. Aggregation and disaggregation are central phenomena in
nature, and the self-organization of proteins is very important
because fibrous proteins are involved in both intra- and
extra-cellular functions. For instance, several illnesses, such as
Alzheimer disease or diabetes are induced by beta-amyloid peptides
that are a class of natural peptides that tend to aggregate in the
blood. Our pseudopeptides have been designed with the aim of
interfering with this process.
Finally our pseudopeptides can be used as catalysts for
environmentally friendly reactions, thus mimicking aldolase
enzymes. Indeed it has been demonstrated that proline can be
utilized as a non-toxic and cheap catalyst in reaction that proceed
through the formation of enamine intermediate. Following this
approach, we prepared enantiomerically pure compounds with
anticancer activity.
