| abstract |
A process is disclosed for synthesizing a peptide chain involving reacting, in aqueous solution, an amino acid containing a blocked alpha amino or carboxyl group with a polynucleotide handle to form a covalently bonded complex. The complex is separated from unreacted acid by reversible coupling to a complementary polynucleotide adsorbent immobilized on an insoluble support, and then the complex is eluted from the support as an aqueous solution. The complex is then enzymatically deblocked and used as the precursor for repeating the reaction with a further acid and the process reiterated. During the process, those chains which failed to react with a given acid can be removed by enzymatic degradation. |