A review of the utility of soluble peptide combinatorial libraries.

This paper reviews the preparation and use of soluble synthetic combinatorial libraries (SCLs) made up of millions of peptide and nonpeptide sequences for the identification of highly active individual compounds. First presented in 1991, SCLs have been prepared in a number of different lengths and formats, and are composed entirely of L-, D-, and unnatural amino acids. Also, existing peptide libraries have been chemically transformed to yield large diversities of nonpeptidic compounds. This review encompasses the published work from this laboratory using SCLs for the identification of antigenic sequences recognized by monoclonal antibodies, novel peptide agonists and antagonists to opioid receptors, new trypsin inhibitors, novel antibacterials, and compounds that inhibit melittin's hemolytic activity. SCLs offer a fundamental, practical advance in the study of interactions between peptide and nonpeptide sequences and their biochemical or pharmacological targets.