| abstract |
It has been discovered that by the use of dimethyl formamide as the solvent element, the Albertson process for the preparation of amino acids is applicable to the preparation with good yield of long chain aliphatic amino acids which are previously obtained with poor yield. The products, some of which are new, have intrinsically useful properties, due to their lipid-like structure; by coupling reactions using a carbodiimide and a phase transfer catalyst, these products can also be hetero-oligomerized to obtain useful lipopeptides. These monomers or lipopeptides can be incorporated into bioactive peptides to increase their hydrophobic character, or conjugated with pharmaceutical agents to modify their pharmaceutical properties, including translocation through biological membranes and metabolic stability. They can thus be polymerized, via their Leuchs anhydrides or active esters, to obtain lipoproteins. |