A Computerized Peptide Synthesizer with Feed Back Control.

Abstract

The feedback control in the automated system described is based on perchloric acid titration of free amino groups. If an unsatisfactory yield of coupling or deblocking is found, the coupling or deblocking may automatically be repeated. A complete printout of the synthesis is obtained. Two syntheses of leucine enkephalin are described, one with dicyclohexylcarbodiimide in deficiency. The products are characterized by amino acid analysis, high performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. The system described is highly flexible regarding changes in the software as well as in the analytical, reactor and metering units. In principle, the basis construction of the synthesizer may be applied to solid phase synthesis of oligonucleotides.