Diastereomeric norbornapeptides represent globular scaffolds with geometries determined by the chirality of amino acid residues and sharing structural features of β-turns and α-helices.

Norbornapeptides (bicyclo[2.2.1]heptapeptides) and related bicyclic homodetic peptides were prepared by solid-phase peptide synthesis using an orthogonal protection scheme. These conformationally rigid peptides cover an almost pristine area of peptide topological space and adopt globular shapes similar to those of short α-helical peptides.

Novel dinuclear arene ruthenium trithiolato complexes containing a water-soluble peptide moiety in one of the three thiolato bridges were designed and evaluated against A2780 human ovarian cancer cells and against their cisplatin-resistant mutant A2780cisR.

A new strategy to exploit galectin presence to target matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) is presented. A bifunctional conjugate with lactose and an inhibitor for MMPs is able to bind MMP and Gal-3 simultaneously. This compound might allow the lectin to attract the MMP inhibitor to the tumour site and to block protumoural activities of the lectin at the same time.

(1b) was prepared and crystallized to assign its bridge stereochemistry. The bridge configuration appears as planned by the chirality of the branching amino acids. Bicyclization furthermore depends on the presence of matched chiralities in the branching amino acids. The stereoselective formation of the second bridge opens the way for the synthesis of a large family of bicyclic peptides as promising new scaffolds for drug design.

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