In Vitro Selection of mRNA-Display Libraries Containing Unnatural Amino Acids

Abstract

The mRNA display library provides a strategy to make up to 10[superscript 13] unique peptides that fuse with their own genes via a covalent link. In this thesis, several strategies to prepare mRNA display libraries containing unnatural side chains are described. Chapter 1 is a short introduction and application of mRNA-display technology. Chapter 2 describes a chemical derivatization strategy to append an unnatural side chain to libraries. Chapter 2 introduces the incorporation of unnatural amino acids via non-sense codon suppression. Chapter 4 focuses on the catalytic selection with mRNA display libraries. These libraries should facilitate the discovery of novel ligands with functionalities beyond those provided by the 20 naturally occurring amino acids.