Investigation of the Interactions of β-Peptides with DNA Duplexes by Circular Dichroism Spectroscopy

The interaction of β‐peptides with the DNA duplexes of dA20dT20 and a GCN4‐binding CRE sequence was examined. To gauge the factors that govern these interactions, two β‐pentadecapeptides, 1 and 2, a β‐dodecapeptide, 3, three β‐decapeptides, 4–6, three β‐heptapeptides, 7–9, and β‐octaarginine 10 were designed and synthesized. The β‐peptides were conceived to adopt a β‐peptide 314 helix, in which the side chains at position i and i + 3 are aligned vertically along one side of the helix. The side chains of Lys, Asn, and Arg were positioned such that potential H‐bonding sites were created for a helical conformation to interact with the base pairs of DNA. CD Analysis showed that β‐peptides 1, 2, and 10 interacted with dA20dT20. In addition, β‐peptides 1 and 2 showed significant interaction with a DNA‐duplex 20mer containing the ATF/CREB recognition sequence for the regulatory protein GCN4. It is impossible, at this stage of the investigation, to make a safe proposal about the actual nature of the interaction of the structures(s) of the complexes, the formation of which is suggested by the CD spectra reported herein.