Interfacial ring-opening polymerization of amino-acid-derived N-thiocarboxyanhydrides toward well-defined polypeptides

Interfacial ring-opening polymerizations (iROP) of α-amino-acid derived N-thiocarboxyanhydrides (NTAs) in hexanes or heptane suspension using soluble primary amine initiators have been demonstrated to produce polypeptides with controlled molecular weight and low-tomoderate molecular weight distribution under mild conditions. The NTA monomers were shown to have significantly enhanced moisture and thermal stability relative to Ncarboxyanhydrides (NCAs), resulting in long shelf life and allowing the polymerization to occur quantitatively in open air.