CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION OF A NEW CLASS OF SEQUENTIAL OLIGOPEPTIDE CARRIERS (SOCN) FOR MULTIPLE ANCHORING OF ANTIGENIC PEPTIDES - APPLICATION TO THE ACETYLCHOLINE-RECEPTOR (ACHR) MAIN IMMUNOGENIC REGION

A new class of sequential oligopeptide carriers (SOCn), namely (Lys-Ai b-Gly)(n) (n=2-7), for anchoring antigenic peptides, is presented. The se SOCn have been designed in order to assume a determined structural motif, exhibiting defined spatial orientations of the Lys-(NH2)-H-epsi lon anchoring groups. The NMR study showed that SOCn adopt a rigid con formation with some regularity, initiated from the C-terminus of the c arrier, while molecular dynamics simulation confirmed the occurrence o f a distorted 3(10)-helix. It was also demonstrated, by (1)HNMR, that all the antigenic peptides bound to the SOCn retain their original, fo lded active, structure and that probably they do not interact to each other. It is concluded that the beneficial structural elements of the SOCn impose a favorable disposition of the anchored peptides so that p otent antigens with maximum molecular recognition are generated.