A highly efficient method has been developed for the solid-phase synthesis of an "unnatural biopolymer" consisting of chiral aminocarbonate monomers linked via a carbamate backbone. Oligocarbamates were synthesized from N-protected p-nitrophenyl carbonate monomers, substituted with a variety of side chains, with greater than 99 percent overall coupling efficiencies per step. A spatially defined library of oligocarbamates was generated by using photochemical methods and screened for binding affinity to a monoclonal antibody. A number of high-affinity ligands were then synthesized and analyzed in solution with respect to their inhibition concentration values, water/octanol partitioning coefficients, and proteolytic stability. These and other unnatural polymers may provide new frameworks for drug development and for testing theories of protein and peptide folding and structure.

The solid phase synthesis and generation of libraries of "unnatural biopolymers" is described. These polymers are characterized by novel backbones and building blocks, the properties of which may modify their pharmacological and folding properties.