Table 2

Examples of amino acid side-chain specific chemistries

Reagents
Group specificity
Crossreactivity

α Haloacetyl compounds: Iodoacetate; α haloacetamides; bromotrifluoroacetone; N chloroacetyliodotyramine
Cys, His, Met, Tyr
NH2 groups (slow at low pH)
N Maleimide derivatives: N ethylmaleimide (at pH < = 7)
Cys
NH2 groups (slow at low pH)
Mercurial compounds (most specific): p chloromercuribenzoate(PCMB)/p hydroxymercuribenzoate(PHMB) in H2O (optimum at pH 5, competitive displacement possible)
Cys

Disulphide reagents (reversible): 5,5 dithiobis (2 nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB); 4,4 dithiodipyridine; methyl 3 nitro 2 pyridyl disulphide; methyl 2 pyridyl disulphide
Cys

N acetylimidazole
Tyr
NH2 groups (slow)
Diazonium compounds (optimum at pH9, unstable)
Tyr, His
NH2, Trp, Cys and Arg (slow)
Dicarbonyl compounds (pH > = 7): glyoxal; phenylglyoxal; 2,3 butanedione; 1,2 cyclohexanedione
Arg
Lys at pH < = 7
p toluenesulphonylphenyl alaninechloromethyl ketone (TPCK); p toluenesulphonyllysine chloromethyl ketone (TLCK); Methyl-p-nitrobenzenesulphonate
His
Cys
Diethylpyrocarbonate (reversible at pH > = 7)
His (at pH4)
NH2
2 hydroxy 5 nitrobenzyl bromide (HNBB)
Trp

p nitrophenylsulphenyl chloride
Trp, Cys

α Haloacetyl compounds
Met at pH3; also Cys, His, Tyr
NH2 groups (slow at low pH)

Soloviev et al. Journal of Nanobiotechnology 2003 1:4   doi:10.1186/1477-3155-1-4