Difficult peptidesMARTIN QUIBELL and TONY JOHNSON1
IntroductionSolid phase peptide synthesis (SPPS), first proposed by R
Merrifield in1962 (1), has evolved over three decades into a tremendously powerfulmethod for the preparation of peptides and small proteins (2, 3)
An absoluteprerequisite for successful syntheses in all solid phase schemes is thatreactions which accumulate solid supported products, and by the very natureof the technique contaminating by-products, must proceed cleanly andefficiently
During the earlier years of SPPS this optimal situation was notalways achieved, primarily due to contaminated reagents and ill-definedpolymers in combination with poorly flexible protection strategies (4, 5)
Asthe methods of SPPS gained popularity and more widespread application,reagen