Study Questions, Exam 2, Spring 2022 Poly(amino acids)

1) Poly(amino acids).
a. Draw the structures including linking chemistry and stereochemistry for two
of the three poly(amino acids) that were discussed.
b. What are differences that distinguish poly(amino acids) from proteins?
c. Based on your lecture notes, describe the molecular weights of the
polyamino acids produced by bacillus strains and Streptomyces albulus.
d. Which of the polyamino acids has both D- and L-repeat units?

2) Poly(amino acids)-2: For the polyamino acids produced by bacillus strains and
Streptomyces albulus, what commercial applications were discussed for these
products of microbial fermentation (3 for each).

3) Describe the mechanism of action of the polyamino acid produced by Streptomyces

albulus that results in antimicrobial activity. For which 2 microbes is the MIC equal
to 1 μg/mL?

4) Poly(amino acids)-2: For the polyamino acids produced by bacillus strains and
Streptomyces albulus, how do these polyamino acids help in their survival. In other
words, how does it provide them a competitive advantage against other
microorganism for which they compete?

5) Discuss the concept behind developing an engineered Corynebacterium that

produces the anionic polyamide? What strategy was used to produce the polyamide
with nearly quantitative L-repeat units? Why could this be important in terms its
use in biomedical applications?

Prof. Gross, Natural Polymers Page 1