The crystal structure of Z-Aib-Gly-Aib-Leu-Aib-OtBu, the synthetic, protected N-terminal pentapeptide of trichotoxin.

Z-Aib-Gly-Aib-Leu-Aib-OtBu, the alpha-aminoisobutyric acid (Aib)-containing N-terminal pentapeptide of the antibiotic trichotoxin, has been studied by x-ray crystallography. The molecule forms a right-handed helix with a reversal of the sense of the helix at the C-terminus. Torsion angles and hydrogen bonding pattern are consistent with a mixed 3(10)-/alpha-helical conformation. In the crystal, continuous columns are formed by head-to-tail arrangement of hydrogen-bonded molecules along the helix axis. The helical columns associate via hydrogen bonds forming closely packed parallel pairs.