The Chemistry of Polypeptides : Essays in Honor of Dr. Leonidas Zervas

Leonidas Zervas, Emeritus Professor of organic chemistry at the University of Athens, and past president of the National Academy of Greece, cele­ brated his seventieth birthday this past year. For almost fifty years Zervas devoted his scientific skills and perception to the advancement of chemistry, particularly in the field of peptides and proteins. Indeed, his efforts, along with those of his teacher, co-worker, and friend, Max Bergmann, laid the foundations for a new era in the chemistry of peptides and proteins. Many of his colleagues and former students felt that it would be most at this time to honor him with a commemorative volume. They appropriate have contributed to this volume chapters describing some of their work and reviewing the advancements in particular areas of polypeptide chemistry. They dedicate this volume to Leonidas Zervas as an expression of their esteem and appreciation for the role he has played for the past half-century in the field of peptides and proteins. Front Matter....Pages i-xiii The Scientific Work of Leonidas Zervas....Pages 1-20 Active Esters and the Strategy of Peptide Synthesis....Pages 21-41 The Facilitation of Peptide Synthesis by the Use of Picolyl Esters....Pages 43-58 On Cysteine and Cystine Peptides....Pages 59-85 The Tosyl and Related Protecting Groups in Amino Acid and Peptide Chemistry....Pages 87-123 Tactics for Minimal Protection in Peptide Synthesis....Pages 125-142 Peptide Synthesis and the Specificity of Proteinases....Pages 143-153 Structural Studies of Naturally Occurring Cyclic Polypeptides at Rockefeller University....Pages 155-168 The Conformations of Cyclopeptides in Solution....Pages 169-204 Survey of Synthetic Work in the Field of the Bacterial Cell Wall Peptides....Pages 205-235 Intracellular Proteolysis and Its Demonstration with Synthetic and Natural Peptides and Proteins as Substrates....Pages 237-258 Synthesis of Human ACTH and Its Biologically Active Fragments....Pages 259-278 Synthesis of Pure Polypeptide Hormones with Full Biological Activity....Pages 279-295 Neurohypophyseal Hormones: Old and New Slants on the Relationship of Chemical Structure to Biological Activity....Pages 297-313 Use of Polymeric Reagents in the Synthesis of Linear and Cyclic Peptides....Pages 315-333 Solid-Phase Peptide Synthesis....Pages 335-361 Monitoring in Solid-Phase Peptide Synthesis....Pages 363-387 Need for Solid-Phase Thinking in Solid-Phase Synthesis....Pages 389-411 Back Matter....Pages 413-417 1 The Scientific Work of Leonidas Zervas.- 2 Active Esters and the Strategy of Peptide Synthesis.- I. Introduction.- II. The Development of Active Esters.- III. Active Esters in Stepwise Syntheses.- IV. Active Esters in Solid-Phase Peptide Synthesis.- V. Conclusions.- References.- 3 The Facilitation of Peptide Synthesis by the Use of Picolyl Esters.- I. Introduction : The "Functional Handle"--II. 4-Picolyl Esters of?-Amino Acids.- III. Use of 4-Picolyl Esters for the Facilitation of Peptide Synthesis.- IV. Conclusions from Recent Experience.- References.- 4 On Cysteine and Cystine Peptides.-