# Chemical labeling strategies using biomolecule-compatible, nonaqueous media

> **NIH NIH R35** · NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY RALEIGH · 2024 · $369,178

## Abstract

2023. NIH MIRA project summary abstract
Title: Chemical labeling strategies using biomolecule-compatible, nonaqueous media
Abstract:
 Among many classes of chemical tools devised to date, protein bioconjugation
technologies have proven valuable in a wide variety of contexts such as preparation of
therapeutic agents and study of disease mechanism The last decade has witnessed a
substantial advance in bioconjugation technologies, although challenges of selective and
efficient labeling have not been completely addressed to date for many of the 20 canonical
amino acids. Our research program tackles the longstanding issues of selective
bioconjugation of unactivated amino acids by identifying nonaqueous media suitable for both
biomolecules and organic chemistry reactions, which has not been actively pursued to date
and is innovative from the applicant’s point of view. Our long-term goal is to develop
bioconjugation methods selectively targeting amino acids that were inaccessible by previous
approaches in aqueous media. Our overall objective in this application is to discover
chemical methods for chemoselective functionalization of hydrophobic, unactivated, and
less abundant amino acids, offering higher chance of site-specific modification due to their
lower natural abundance and less surface exposure. Our central hypothesis is that
nonaqueous media can be compatible with proteins and induce chemical reactions that were
not achievable in aqueous medium. The rationale for the proposal is that development of
novel bioconjugation methods is expected to become facile by gaining access to a large
number of synthetic methodology literature that often relies on nonaqueous media. The
proposed research is significant because it is expected to provide a chemical tool to target
amino acid residues that were inaccessible by the traditional methods and to provide a new
paradigm to create bioconjugates.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10940965
- **Project number:** 1R35GM155051-01
- **Recipient organization:** NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY RALEIGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Jun Ohata
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $369,178
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-07-15 → 2029-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10940965

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10940965, Chemical labeling strategies using biomolecule-compatible, nonaqueous media (1R35GM155051-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10940965. Licensed CC0.

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