Metal Binding Ability of Small Peptides Containing Cysteine Residues

The Cd(II)‐, Pb(II)‐, Ni(II)‐ and Zn(II)‐complexes of small terminally protected peptides containing CXXX, XXXC, XCCX, CX(n)C (n=1–3) sequences have been studied with potentiometric, UV/Vis and CD spectroscopic techniques. The cysteine thiolate group is the primary binding site for all studied metal ions, but the presence of a histidyl or aspartyl side chain in the molecule contributes to the stability of the complexes. For two‐cysteine containing peptides the (S(−),S(−)) coordinated species are formed in the physiological pH range and the stability increases in the Ni(II)<Zn(II)<Pb(II)<Cd(II) order. As a conclusion, the inserting of −CXXC− sequence into the peptide makes the synthesis of peptides with high selectivity to toxic Cd(II) or Pb(II) ion possible. In addition, the spectroscopic characterization of these complexes can contribute to the discovery of the exact binding site and binding mode of longer peptides mimicking the biologically important proteins.