ABSTRACT
Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RPC) is the method of choice for the rapid estimation of the homogeneity of synthetic peptides. The possibility of using RPC "retention coefficients" for the prediction of peptide retention times is based generally upon the assumption that peptide retention is due primarily to the amino acid composition of the peptide. The earlier studies have led to believe that the observed retention times of peptides in RPC are due predominantly to a combination of three factors: the amino acid composition; ionic and other intramolecular interactions between neighboring amino acids; and induced conformational effects. While amino acid composition is, overall, the most substantial factor influencing retention, intramolecular ionic effects and induced conformational effects can predominate for a significant number of peptides. An identical periodicity is seen when the hydrophobic moment of the peptides is plotted vs. the retention time.
