NOVEL DISULFIDES AND THIOL COMPOUNDS

The present invention is directed to novel disulfides and thiols that are of up to about eighteen amino acids. One example, is a compound of the formula (1): A-B-C-S-S-D-E-F, wherein: A and F are selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, an amino acid, a dipeptide, a tripeptide, a modified polypeptide up to three amino acids long, and a carbobenzoxy group, B and E are selected from the group consisting of an amino acid, a dipeptide, a tripeptide, and a modified polypeptide comprising up to and including three amino acids, C and D are selected from the group consisting of a modified polypeptide and a polypeptide comprising up to and including three amino acids, and S is the sulfur atom in the modified polypeptide and the polypeptide in C and D.