Self-cyclisation as a general and efficient platform for peptide and protein macrocyclisation.

Macrocyclisation of proteins and peptides results in a remarkable increase in structural stability, making cyclic peptides and proteins of great interest in drug discovery-either directly as drug leads or as in the case of cyclised nanodiscs (cNDs), as tools for studies of trans-membrane receptors and membrane-active peptides. Various biological methods have been developed that are capable of yielding head-to-tail macrocyclised products. Recent advances in enzyme-catalysed macrocyclisation include discovery of new enzymes or design of new engineered enzymes.

Enzymatic Ligation of a Pore Blocker Toxin and a Gating Modifier Toxin: Creating Double-Knotted Peptides with Improved Sodium Channel Na1.7 Inhibition.

Disulfide-rich animal venom peptides targeting either the voltage-sensing domain or the pore domain of voltage-gated sodium channel 1.7 (Na1.7) have been widely studied as drug leads and pharmacological probes for the treatment of chronic pain.

Structural and functional characterisation of a novel peptide from the Australian sea anemone Actinia tenebrosa.

Sea anemone venoms have long been recognised as a rich source of peptides with interesting pharmacological and structural properties. Our recent transcriptomic studies of the Australian sea anemone Actinia tenebrosa have identified a novel 13-residue peptide, U-AITx-Ate1. U-AITx-Ate1 contains a single disulfide bridge and bears no significant homology to previously reported amino acid sequences of peptides from sea anemones or other species.

Elucidating the Lipid Binding Properties of Membrane-Active Peptides Using Cyclised Nanodiscs.

The lipid composition of the cellular membrane plays an important role in a number of biological processes including the binding of membrane-active peptides. Characterization of membrane binding remains challenging, due to the technical limitations associated with the use of standard biophysical techniques and available membrane models. Here, we investigate the lipid binding properties of two membrane-active peptides, VSTx1, a well characterized ion-channel inhibitor, identified from spider venom, that preferentially binds to anionic lipid mixtures, and AA139 an antimicrobial β-hairpin peptide with uncharacterised lipid binding properties, currently in pre-clinical development.

A new vector coupling ligation-independent cloning with sortase a fusion for efficient cloning and one-step purification of tag-free recombinant proteins.

We have developed a new ligation independent cloning (LIC) vector - pSrtA9, which can be utilized for one-step purification of recombinant proteins. The new LIC site in the pSrtA9 vector, hosts a DNA sequence centered on a SfoI restriction site and integrates a coding sequence for sortase A (SrtA) recognition. Preceding the LIC site, pSrtA9 incorporates an N-terminal 6xHis-tag and the catalytic core of SrtA from Staphylococcus aureus (SrtAΔ59).

A complicated complex: Ion channels, voltage sensing, cell membranes and peptide inhibitors.

Voltage-gated ion channels (VGICs) are specialised ion channels that have a voltage dependent mode of action, where ion conduction, or gating, is controlled by a voltage-sensing mechanism. VGICs are critical for electrical signalling and are therefore important pharmacological targets. Among these, voltage-gated sodium channels (Nas) have attracted particular attention as potential analgesic targets.