Synthesis, molecular docking and anticancer studies of peptides and iso-peptides

Chiral peptides and iso-peptides were synthesized in excellent yield by using benzotriazole mediated solution phase synthesis. Benzotriazole acted both as activating and leaving group, eliminating frequent use of protection and subsequent deprotection. The procedure was based on the hypothesis that epimerization should be suppressed in solution due to a faster coupling rate than SPPS. All the synthesized peptides complied with Lipinski's Ro5 except for the rotatable bonds. Inhibition of cell proliferation of cancer cell lines is one of the most commonly used methods to study the effectiveness of any anticancer agents. Synthesized peptides and iso-peptides were tested against three cancer cell lines (MCF-7, MDA-MB 231) to determine their anti-proliferative potential. NFkB was also determined. Molecular docking studies were also carried out to complement the experimental results.