Discovery of the first self-assembling peptide, study of peptide dynamic behaviors, and G protein-coupled receptors using an Aviv circular dichroism spectropolarimeter.

Circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy is a useful technique to study the structure and dynamics of peptides, proteins and nucleic acids. CD is particularly useful because sample volumes may be as low as 50 μL, it provides high precision and sensitivity, and it achieves a good signal to noise ratio. CD characterizes molecular conformational changes in real time by finely controlling temperature, pH, and titrating urea and guanidine·HCl which is necessary for studying protein folding. Although CD does not provide detailed structure at the atomic level, it provides a global structural framework. Researchers use CD to observe molecular phenomena, namely how macromolecules unfold/refold and their overall self-assembly/disassembly. Using CD to monitor a peptide structure, I serendipitously discovered the self-assembling peptide EAK16 from yeast protein Zuotin. This unusual peptide formed a new type of nanofiber scaffold hydrogel material. The discovery in 1990 opened a new field in the design and study of numerous self-assembling peptides, thereby launching the area of peptide nanobiotechnology. In this review, I reflect on my personal discoveries of several self-assembling peptides, investigations into the dynamic behaviors of peptides, as well as the impact of the work on society. I also describe studies of natural membrane proteins and engineered membrane proteins using CD. Furthermore, I enjoyed numerous and close interactions with Jack Aviv since 1997. He generously supported 10 high impact workshops (Crete and Mikonos) and meetings in various countries around the world that left fond memories of many young researches who later became leading scientists in their respective fields.