[D-Arg2] dermorphin and nineteen N-terminal tetrapeptide analogs were synthesized by a conventional solution method and their analgesic activities after subcutaneous administration to mice were examined. The analgesic effect was assessed by means of the tail pressure test. [D-Arg2] dermorphin was found to have analgesic potency equal to or slightly greater than that of dermorphin. The N-terminal tetrapeptide, H-Tyr-D-Arg-Phe-Gly-OH (I), showed a potency 4.8 times that of morphine and comparable with that of dermorphin on a molar basis. Among the tetrapeptide analogs, several analogs in which Gly4 was replaced by sarcosine or D-Ala exhibited very potent activity more than that of I. On the other hand, replacement of Gly4 by Pro, Leu or D-Leu resulted in a marked decrease in potency. Replacement of either Phe3 by other aromatic amino acid or D-Arg2 by other basic D-amino acid gave analogs with greatly decreased activities. However, one analog whose guanidino functionality on D-Arg2 was blocked by a nitro group, showed activity one-third that of the parent peptide (I). On the basis of these results, the structure-activity relationship for the tetrapeptide is discussed.
采用传统的溶液法合成了[D-Arg2] dermorphin 和 19 种 N 末端四肽类似物,并考察了它们在小鼠皮下注射后的镇痛活性。镇痛效果通过尾压试验进行评估。结果发现,[D-Arg2] dermorphin 的镇痛效力等于或略高于 dermorphin。N 端四肽 H-Tyr-D-Arg-Phe-Gly-OH (I)的药效是
吗啡的 4.8 倍,按摩尔计与
去甲吗啡相当。在四肽类似物中,有几种类似物的 Gly4 被
肌氨酸或 D-Ala 取代,其活性非常强,超过了 I。用其他芳香族
氨基酸取代 Phe3 或用其他碱性 D-
氨基酸取代 D-Arg2,都会使类似物的活性大大降低。不过,有一种类似物的 D-Arg2 上的
胍基功能被硝基阻断,其活性只有母肽(I)的三分之一。在这些结果的基础上,讨论了四肽的结构-活性关系。