Abilities of some tryptophan and phenylalanine derivatives to inhibit gastric acid secretion.

Benzotript (N-p-chlorobenzoyl-L-tryptophan) has been shown to be a receptor-antagonist in vivo and in vitro for peptides from the gastrin family. In the present study, we examine tryptophan, and some of its N- and C-acylated derivatives, as well as some phenylalanine derivatives, to show their ability to inhibit gastrin-induced acid secretion in the rat in vivo and to compete for the binding of [125I]-(Leu-15)-HG-17 to its cellular receptor on rabbit isolated gastric mucosal cells. N- and C- derivatives of tryptophan and phenylalanine were found to inhibit gastrin-induced acid secretion and binding of [125I]-(Leu-15)-HG-17 to its mucosal cell receptors. By either criterion, the relative antagonistic potencies of the compounds tested were: tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-tryphophan-p-nitrophenyl ester approximately equal to tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-tryptophan-carbamoylmethyl ester greater than tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-tryptophyl-L-methionyl-carbamoylmethyl ester approximately equal to tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-phenylalanine-carbamoylmethyl ester approximately equal to tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-tryptophyl-L-methionyl-amide greater than tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-tryptophan greater than tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-phenylalanine greater than benzyloxycarbonyl-L-tryptophan approximately equal to benzotript, with minor differences between the in vivo and the in vitro experiments. These results demonstrate that both the nature of the amino acid residue and the N- and C-substitutions are important in determining antagonist activity and affinity for gastrin receptors.