Leu-enkephalin and Met-enkephalin compared

The two enkephalins share the N-terminal Tyr-Gly-Gly-Phe and differ only in the fifth residue: leucine or methionine.

Sequences side by side

Aligned from residue 1: 4 positions identical, 1 substituted. In each column the upper residue is Leu-enkephalin's and the lower is Met-enkephalin's. Substituted positions are highlighted.

Both have the same termini: free amine and free acid.

Calculated properties

Calculated from each structure

Property	Leu-enkephalin	Met-enkephalin	Difference (Met-enkephalin − Leu-enkephalin)
Residues	5	5	0
Molecular formula	C28H37N5O7	C27H35N5O7S
Monoisotopic mass (Da)	555.2693	573.2257	+17.9564
Average mass (g/mol)	555.63	573.67	+18.03
Net charge at pH 7	0.0	0.0	0.0
Isoelectric point	6.09	6.09	0.00
Hydropathy (GRAVY)	0.90	0.52	−0.38
ε280 (M−1 cm−1)	1,490	1,490

Telling them apart by mass spectrometry

The monoisotopic masses differ by 17.9564 Da, which any routine mass spectrometer resolves.

Expected protonated ions (monoisotopic m/z)

Ion	Leu-enkephalin	Met-enkephalin
[M+H]+	556.2766	574.2330
[M+2H]2+	278.6419	287.6201

Telling them apart by HPLC

Leu-enkephalin is the more hydrophobic by the Kyte–Doolittle average (a difference of 0.38), so in reversed-phase HPLC it would usually be expected to elute later. Retention depends on the whole molecule and on the method, so the order is confirmed by running both, or by mass spectrometry of each peak.

Analytical variants each can form

The sequence-specific variants from each entry. A variant only one of them can form is a quick way to tell which is which, and a reminder of what to look for in each.

Sequence-specific variants

Variant	Mass change	Leu-enkephalin	Met-enkephalin
Methionine oxidation	+15.995 Da per oxidized residue	No	Yes

Full details, with isotope patterns and fragment ions, are on each entry: Leu-enkephalin and Met-enkephalin. Both are compared with the rest of their family on the family page.

Sources & Further Reading

1. Prohaska T, Irrgeher J, Benefield J, Böhlke JK, Chesson LA, Coplen TB, et al. Standard atomic weights of the elements 2021 (IUPAC Technical Report). Pure and Applied Chemistry 2022;94(5):573–600. doi:10.1515/pac-2019-0603
2. Wang M, Huang WJ, Kondev FG, Audi G, Naimi S. The AME 2020 atomic mass evaluation (II). Tables, graphs and references. Chinese Physics C 2021;45(3):030003. doi:10.1088/1674-1137/abddaf
3. Rice P, Longden I, Bleasby A. EMBOSS: the European Molecular Biology Open Software Suite. Trends in Genetics 2000;16(6):276–277. doi:10.1016/S0168-9525(00)02024-2
4. Pace CN, Vajdos F, Fee L, Grimsley G, Gray T. How to measure and predict the molar absorption coefficient of a protein. Protein Science 1995;4(11):2411–2423. doi:10.1002/pro.5560041120
5. Kyte J, Doolittle RF. A simple method for displaying the hydropathic character of a protein. Journal of Molecular Biology 1982;157(1):105–132. doi:10.1016/0022-2836(82)90515-0
6. Meija J, Coplen TB, Berglund M, Brand WA, De Bièvre P, Gröning M, et al. Isotopic compositions of the elements 2013 (IUPAC Technical Report). Pure and Applied Chemistry 2016;88(3):293–306. doi:10.1515/pac-2015-0503
7. Roepstorff P, Fohlman J. Letter to the editors: proposal for a common nomenclature for sequence ions in mass spectra of peptides. Biomedical Mass Spectrometry 1984;11(11):601. doi:10.1002/bms.1200111109
8. Biemann K. Contributions of mass spectrometry to peptide and protein structure. Biomedical and Environmental Mass Spectrometry 1988;16(1–12):99–111. doi:10.1002/bms.1200160119
9. Geiger T, Clarke S. Deamidation, isomerization, and racemization at asparaginyl and aspartyl residues in peptides. Succinimide-linked reactions that contribute to protein degradation. Journal of Biological Chemistry 1987;262(2):785–794. doi:10.1016/S0021-9258(19)75855-4
10. Manning MC, Chou DK, Murphy BM, Payne RW, Katayama DS. Stability of protein pharmaceuticals: an update. Pharmaceutical Research 2010;27(4):544–575. doi:10.1007/s11095-009-0045-6
11. D'Hondt M, Bracke N, Taevernier L, Gevaert B, Verbeke F, Wynendaele E, et al. Related impurities in peptide medicines. Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis 2014;101:2–30. doi:10.1016/j.jpba.2014.06.012

Cosmic Peptides. (2026, October 25). Leu-enkephalin and Met-enkephalin compared. Cosmic Peptides Research Library. Retrieved October 26, 2026, from https://cosmicpeptides.com/research/peptides/compare/leu-enkephalin-vs-met-enkephalin

@misc{cosmicpeptides_research_peptides_compare_leu_enkephalin_vs_met_enkephalin,
  author       = {{Cosmic Peptides}},
  title        = {Leu-enkephalin and Met-enkephalin compared},
  howpublished = {Cosmic Peptides Research Library},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = oct,
  url          = {https://cosmicpeptides.com/research/peptides/compare/leu-enkephalin-vs-met-enkephalin},
  urldate      = {2026-10-26},
  note         = {Last reviewed 2026-10-25}
}

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