Polymers containing enzymatically degradable bonds, 9. Chymotrypsm catalyzed hydrolysis of a p‐nitroanilide drug model, p bound via oligopeptides onto poly(vinylpyrrolidone‐co‐maleic anhydride)

Copolymers of 1‐vinyl‐2‐pyrrolidone with maleic anhydride which contain oligopeptide sidechains with l‐phenylalanine p ‐nitroanilide (Phe‐NAp) end groups were synthesized. The chymotrypsin catalyzed hydrolysis of these polymers was studied. The rate of p ‐nitroaniline release was found to depend on the structure of the oligopeptied sequences: GlyGlyValPheNAp > GlyValPheNAp > GlyGlyPheNAp. From a comparison with similar substrates based on poly[ N ‐(2‐hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide] the influence of the structure of the polymeric backbone on the rate of cleavage of bonds at the ends of oligopeptide side‐chains was estimated.