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Aromatic amino acids are essential hot spots for accelerating selfassembly
(amyloidogenic) process and stabilization of peptide
structures. Supramolecular association of phenylalanine results in
the formation of fibrils with amyloid-like morphology, which has
been implicated for Alzheimer’s diseases to phenylketonuria.
Tyrosine, another aromatic amino acid, plays important roles in
protein synthesis, as a precursor of neurotransmitter synthesis and
in cellular signal transduction. We will present our studies on
aromatic amino acids in two contexts:
(a) Tyrosine self-assembly by examining the influence of various
parameters such as concentration of the amino acid, aging, and
solvent [1].
(b) Inhibition of insulin fiber formation by designed aromatic
peptide conjugates and computational assessment of peptide
conjugate-hormone interaction [2]. |