The development of a prototype software package, the Gen-Pep Algorithm, an entirely new, receptor sequence, hydrophobic free energy eigenfunction-based proprietary system for short peptide design, will be completed. Its feasibility with respect to a yield of new peptides which elicit target receptor-mediated biological activation in receptor cDNA transfected cell lines will be tested using Cytosensor Microphysiometry. Gen-Pep exploits a sequence of linear transformations of the hydrophobic free energies of the amino acid sequences of peptide and their receptors and includes eigenvalue decomposition and complex pole spectral and wavelet transformation and a constructive step using the leading eigenvectors. Given a peptide receptor sequence, this system generates a family of candidate peptides to interact with it. As exemplars, short peptide analogues of neurotensin and cholecystokinin will be designed and tested for their recently demonstrated direct action on the D2 dopamine receptor and the dopamine transporter proteins respectively. New short peptide analogues of (longer peptide) epidemoid growth factor, transforming growth factor and fibrobast growth factor will be designed and tested similarly. Licensing and support of Gen-Pep including a superfamily hydrophobic free energy eigenfunction library, contract new peptide development for biotechnology, companies and new peptide-drug development constitute the three commercial goals of the enterprise.

Proposed Commercial Applications

1) Licensing Gen-Pep software, support and eigenfunction library for an annual fee to biotechnology and pharmaceutical research concerns. 2) Contracting with similar entities for Cielo Institute, Inc. to generate and preliminarily test promising candidate, short peptides designed for specific purposes. 3) Developing and testing new peptide ligands for patenting by Cielo Institute, Inc.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Type
Small Business Innovation Research Grants (SBIR) - Phase I (R43)
Project #
1R43MH058026-01
Application #
2536176
Study Section
Small Business Research Review Committee (MHSB)
Program Officer
Huerta, Michael F
Project Start
1998-03-01
Project End
1999-06-30
Budget Start
1998-03-01
Budget End
1999-06-30
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
1998
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Cielo Institute, Inc.
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
Asheville
State
NC
Country
United States
Zip Code
28804
Mandell, A J; Owens, M J; Selz, K A et al. (1998) Mode matches in hydrophobic free energy eigenfunctions predict peptide-protein interactions. Biopolymers 46:89-101
Selz, K A; Mandell, A J; Shlesinger, M F (1998) Hydrophobic free energy eigenfunctions of pore, channel, and transporter proteins contain beta-burst patterns. Biophys J 75:2332-42