Synthesis of a series of residue 1 (pyroglutamic acid) analogs of thyrotrophin releasing hormone.

This report describes the synthesis of 23 analogs of thyrotrophin releasing hormone, L-pyroglutamic acid-L-histidyl-L-prolineamide, where only the pyroglutamic acid moiety is modified. Twelve of the analogs contain different heterocyclic rings or are derivatized pyrrolidone rings. The syntheses of these pyroglutamic acid analogs are also described. Peptide bond formation was generally achieved by catalyzing carbodiimide coupling with 1-hydroxybenzotriazole. The histidine side chain was protected with the 2,4-dinitrophenyl group during di- and tripeptide synthesis and was removed with benzenethiol Final purification of tripeptides involved passage of synthetic material over a Dowex 1--X4 (bicarbonate) column. The route for synthesis of thyrotrophin releasing hormone and its analogs is highly efficient, since the native hormone may be obtained with 90% efficiency.