Synthetic alpha-helical peptides incorporating intercalators for DNA recognition

The design and synthesis of a water-soluble 14-residue peptide, in which a quinoline intercalator is attached to the peptide backbone via alkylation of a central cysteine residue, is reported. 600 MHz 1H NMR spectroscopy and circular dichroism indicate that the peptide forms a nascent helix in aqueous solution, ie. an ensemble of turn-like structures over several adjacent residues in the peptide. A large number of sequential dNN(i, i+1) connectivities were observed in NOESY spectra, and titration of trifluoroethanol into a solution of the peptide resulted in the characteristic CD spectrum expected for an alpha-helix. At low DNA concentrations, CD spectroscopy indicates that this helical conformation is stabilized, presumably due to folding of the peptide in the major groove of DNA.