We present a versatile synthesis of the eukaryotic signaling peptide glorin as well as glorinamide, a synthetic analog. The ability of these compounds to activate glorin-induced genes in the social amoeba Polysphondylium pallidum was evaluated by quantitative reverse transcription PCR, whereby both compounds showed bioactivity comparable to a glorin standard. This synthetic route will be useful in conducting detailed structure-activity relationship studies as well as in the design of chemical probes to dissect glorin-mediated signaling pathways.
Keywords: Dictyostelium; Polysphondylium; glorin; multicellularity; signaling molecules; social amoebae.