Proteins from the D ‐Chiral World

The chiroptical properties and substrate specificity of the D‐enantiomer of the naturally occurring HIV protease synthesized by Kent et al. demonstrate that the three‐dimensional structures of D‐ and L‐enzymes really are mirror images of one another—that is, identical amino acid sequences actually fold in the same way in the tertiary structure. Interest in D‐proteins goes beyond basic research, as the enzymatic stability may allow important medical applications; additional areas of application include protein crystallography.