Detailed Explanation of Peptide Customization Technology and Its Application in the Field of Scientific Research

1. Introduction

Peptides are compounds formed by two or more amino acids linked by peptide bonds, which are widely present in living organisms and participate in a variety of physiological processes, including cell signaling, enzyme catalysis, immune response, and metabolic regulation. In recent years, with the development of biosynthesis and chemical synthesis technologies, peptide customization services have increasingly become a core tool in life sciences, pharmaceutical research and development, and molecular biology research.
The editor will introduce in detail the technical principles, main processes, quality control processes and typical applications of peptide customization in scientific research.

2. Technical principle of peptide customization

Peptide customization is the process of synthesizing amino acids in specific sequences to obtain the target peptide molecules with the desired structure and function. Its main synthesis techniques include:

1. Solid Phase Peptide Synthesis (SPPS)
   At present, a wide range of synthesis technologies are used. By fixing one amino acid on a solid-phase resin, then gradually adding other amino acids, using condensing agents (e.g., HBTU, DIC) to connect the amino acid residues, and finally chemically cutting the synthesized peptides from the solid-phase carrier.
   Advantages: high degree of automation; can synthesize long peptides; Easy to purify and modify.
2. Liquid Phase Synthesis
   It is suitable for short-chain peptides and large-scale industrial synthesis, with mild reaction conditions but cumbersome steps.

3.Detailed explanation of the customization process

A standard peptide customization process generally includes the following key steps:

1. Design and sequence confirmation
   Customers provide amino acid sequence or functional requirements;
   The service party analyzes the sequence (whether it contains special modifications, whether it contains disulfide bonds, whether it is water-soluble, etc.);
   Bioinformatics tools were used to predict secondary structure, hydrophilicity and other parameters to assist in design.
2. Synthesis stage
   Choose the appropriate solid-phase carrier (e.g., Rink amide resin, Wang resin);
   Precise control of the coupling reaction of each amino acid;
   Add protective groups (e.g., Fmoc, Boc) to avoid side effects.
3. Purification and analysis
   High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) for separation and purification, the purity can reach more than 95%;
   Molecular weight was confirmed using mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF, ESI-MS);
   Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and circular dichroism (CD) assisted analysis are performed if necessary.
4. Packaging and quality control
   Provide lyophilized powder according to customer needs;
   Evaluation of storage conditions by stability tests (high temperature, light, hydrolysis);
   Provide Quality Analysis Report (COA) and MSDS documentation.

4. Types of peptide modifications

Common functional touch-ups in the customization process include:
N-terminal modifications: acetylation, biotin, biotinylation;
C-terminal modification: amideation, esterification;
Fluorescent labeling: FITC, TAMRA;
phosphorylation/glycosylation: mimicking naturally modified peptides;
Disulfide bond bridging: stabilize the spatial structure.

5. Application of peptide customization in scientific research

1. Antibody preparation and epitope analysis
   Researchers can synthesize specific epitope peptides as antigens for the preparation of polyclonal or monoclonal antibodies.
2. Cell signaling pathway research
   Synthesis of phosphorylated or mutant site peptides for protein kinase activity screening, pathway validation, etc.
3. Pharmacological screening and functional verification
   peptide antagonists and agonist mimics;
   Combination studies with GPCR and other targets.
4. Immunology research
   Vaccine research and development, immunogenicity assessment, peptide library construction, etc.
5. Protein interaction experiments (e.g., pull-down)
   Protein function and interaction analysis are achieved by capturing protein complexes with tags (e.g., His, FLAG, Biotin) with peptides.

6. Technical challenges and development trends and Challenge:

Low synthesis efficiency of long-chain (>50aa) peptides;
Hydrophobic polypeptides are easy to aggregate and affect solubility;
The synthesis steps of special modifications (such as glycosylation) are complex and costly.
Trend:
Accelerate the promotion of intelligent and peptide synthesis automation equipment;
Peptide drug development drives breakthroughs in functional modification technology;
Custom processes are integrated with bioinformatics to improve design accuracy.

7. Summary

Peptide customization is a highly integrated biosynthesis and chemical engineering technology that requires not only precise equipment and materials, but also precise design logic and analytical capabilities. In the field of scientific research, it has become an indispensable technical support for experimental design and biological validation. With the upgrading of technology and the deepening of application, it will release greater potential in the future in basic scientific research, precision medicine, biopharmaceuticals and other directions.