Discovery of Stable and Selective Antibody Mimetics from Combinatorial Libraries of Polyvalent, Loop-Functionalized Peptoid Nanosheets.

The ability of antibodies to bind a wide variety of analytes with high specificity and high affinity makes them ideal candidates for therapeutic and diagnostic applications. However, the poor stability and high production cost of antibodies have prompted exploration of a variety of synthetic materials capable of specific molecular recognition. Unfortunately, it remains a fundamental challenge to create a chemically diverse population of protein-like, folded synthetic nanostructures with defined molecular conformations in water. Here we report the synthesis and screening of combinatorial libraries of sequence-defined peptoid polymers engineered to fold into ordered, supramolecular nanosheets displaying a high spatial density of diverse, conformationally constrained peptoid loops on their surface. These polyvalent, loop-functionalized nanosheets were screened using a homogeneous Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) assay for binding to a variety of protein targets. Peptoid sequences were identified that bound to the heptameric protein, anthrax protective antigen, with high avidity and selectivity. These nanosheets were shown to be resistant to proteolytic degradation, and the binding was shown to be dependent on the loop display density. This work demonstrates that key aspects of antibody structure and function-the creation of multivalent, combinatorial chemical diversity within a well-defined folded structure-can be realized with completely synthetic materials. This approach enables the rapid discovery of biomimetic affinity reagents that combine the durability of synthetic materials with the specificity of biomolecular materials.

Glycosylated Peptoid Nanosheets as a Multivalent Scaffold for Protein Recognition.

Glycoproteins adhered on the cellular membrane play a pivotal role in a wide range of cellular functions. Their importance is particularly relevant in the recognition process between infectious pathogens (such as viruses, bacteria, toxins) and their host cells. Multivalent interactions at the pathogen-cell interfaces govern binding events and can result in a strong and specific interaction. Here we report an approach to mimic the cell surface presentation of carbohydrate ligands by the multivalent display of sugars on the surface of peptoid nanosheets. The constructs provide a highly organized 2D platform for recognition of carbohydrate-binding proteins. The sugars were displayed using different linker lengths or within loops containing 2-6 hydrophilic peptoid monomers. Both the linkers and the loops contained one alkyne-bearing monomer, to which different saccharides were attached by copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition reactions. Peptoid nanosheets functionalized with different saccharide groups were able to selectively bind multivalent lectins, Concanavalin A and Wheat Germ Agglutinin, as observed by fluorescence microscopy and a homogeneous Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based binding assay. To evaluate the potential of this system as sensor for threat agents, the ability of functionalized peptoid nanosheets to bind Shiga toxin was also studied. Peptoid nanosheets were functionalized with globotriose, the natural ligand of Shiga toxin, and the effective binding of the nanomaterial was verified by the FRET-based binding assay. In all cases, evidence for multivalent binding was observed by systematic variation of the ligand display density on the nanosheet surface. These cell surface mimetic nanomaterials may find utility in the inactivation of pathogens or as selective molecular recognition elements.

Multivalent Peptoid Conjugates Which Overcome Enzalutamide Resistance in Prostate Cancer Cells.

Development of resistance to antiandrogens for treating advanced prostate cancer is a growing concern and extends to recently developed therapeutics, including enzalutamide. Therefore, new strategies to block androgen receptor (AR) function in prostate cancer are required. Here, we report the characterization of a multivalent conjugate presenting two bioactive ethisterone ligands arrayed as spatially defined pendant groups on a peptoid oligomer. The conjugate, named Multivalent Peptoid Conjugate 6 (MPC6), suppressed the proliferation of multiple AR-expressing prostate cancer cell lines including those that failed to respond to enzalutamide and ARN509. The structure-activity relationships of MPC6 variants were evaluated, revealing that increased spacing between ethisterone moieties and changes in peptoid topology eliminated its antiproliferative effect, suggesting that both ethisterone ligand presentation and scaffold characteristics contribute to MPC6 activity. Mechanistically, MPC6 blocked AR coactivator-peptide interaction and prevented AR intermolecular interactions. Protease sensitivity assays suggested that the MPC6-bound AR induced a receptor conformation distinct from that of dihydrotestosterone- or enzalutamide-bound AR. Pharmacologic studies revealed that MPC6 was metabolically stable and displayed a low plasma clearance rate. Notably, MPC6 treatment reduced tumor growth and decreased Ki67 and AR expression in mouse xenograft models of enzalutamide-resistant LNCaP-abl cells. Thus, MPC6 represents a new class of compounds with the potential to combat treatment-resistant prostate cancer. Cancer Res; 76(17); 5124-32. ©2016 AACR.