The Edman degradation process involves several key steps:
Labeling: The peptide is exposed to phenyl isothiocyanate, which selectively labels the N-terminal amino acid. Cleavage: The labeled amino acid is cleaved from the peptide, forming a phenylthiohydantoin (PTH)-amino acid derivative. Identification: The PTH-amino acid is identified, typically using chromatography techniques. Repetition: The process is repeated for the next N-terminal amino acid in the sequence.
