Rapid in situ synthesis of [11C]methyl azide and its application in 11C click-chemistry

An Overview of Recent Advances in Biomedical Applications of Click Chemistry

Cu(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) is a modular and bio-orthogonal approach that is being adopted for the efficient synthesis of organic and bioorganic compounds. It leads to the selective formation of 1,4-disubstituted 1,2,3-triazole units connecting readily accessible building blocks via a stable and biocompatible linkage. The vast array of the bioconjugation applications of click chemistry has been attributed to its fast reaction kinetics, quantitative yields, minimal byproducts, and high chemospecificity and regioselectivity. These combined advantages make click reactions quite suitable for the lead identification and the development of pharmaceutical agents in the fields of medicinal chemistry and drug discovery. In this review, we have outlined the key aspects, the mechanistic details and merits and demerits of the click reaction. In addition, we have also discussed the recent pharmaceutical applications of click chemistry, ranging from the development of anticancer, antibacterial, and antiviral agents to that of biomedical imaging agents and clinical therapeutics.

COB231 targets amyloid plaques in post-mortem human brain tissue and in an Alzheimer mouse model

Previous works have shown the interest of naturally fluorescent proflavine derivatives to label Abeta deposits in vitro. This study aimed to further characterize the properties of the proflavine 3-acetylamino-6-[3-(propargylamino)propanoyl]aminoacridine (COB231) derivative as a probe. This compound was therefore evaluated on human post-mortem and mice brain slices and in vivo in 18-month-old triple transgenic mice APPswe, PS1M146V and tauP301L (3xTgAD) mice presenting the main characteristics of Alzheimer's disease (AD). COB231 labelled amyloid plaques on brain slices of AD patients, and 3xTgAD mice at 10 and 0.1 μM respectively. However, no labelling of the neurofibrillary tangle-rich areas was observed either at high concentration or in the brain of fronto-temporal dementia patients. The specificity of this mapping was attested in mice using Thioflavin S and IMPY as positive controls of amyloid deposits. After intravenous injection of COB231 in old 3xTgAD mice, fluorescent amyloid plaques were detected in the cortex and hippocampus, demonstrating COB231 blood–brain barrier permeability. We also controlled the cellular localization of COB231 on primary neuronal cultures and showed that COB231 accumulates into the cytoplasm and not into the nucleus. Finally, using a viability assay, we only detected a slight cytotoxic effect of COB231 (< 10%) for the highest concentration (100 μM).

Small Molecule Radiopharmaceuticals - A Review of Current Approaches

Radiopharmaceuticals are an integral component of nuclear medicine and are widely applied in diagnostics and therapy. Though widely applied, the development of an “ideal” radiopharmaceutical can be challenging. Issues such as specificity, selectivity, sensitivity, and feasible chemistry challenge the design and synthesis of radiopharmaceuticals. Over time, strategies to address the issues have evolved by making use of new technological advances in the fields of biology and chemistry. This review presents the application of few advances in design and synthesis of radiopharmaceuticals. The topics covered are bivalent ligand approach and lipidization as part of design modifications for enhanced selectivity and sensitivity and novel synthetic strategies for optimized chemistry and radiolabeling of radiopharmaceuticals.

Recent trends in bioorthogonal click-radiolabeling reactions using fluorine-18

The increasing application of positron emission tomography (PET) in nuclear medicine has stimulated the extensive development of a multitude of novel and versatile bioorthogonal conjugation techniques especially for the radiolabeling of biologically active high molecular weight compounds like peptides, proteins or antibodies. Taking into consideration that the introduction of fluorine-18 (t(1/2) = 109.8 min) proceeds under harsh conditions, radiolabeling of these biologically active molecules represents an outstanding challenge and is of enormous interest. Special attention has to be paid to the method of 18F-introduction. It should proceed in a regioselective manner under mild physiological conditions, in an acceptable time span, with high yields and high specific activities. For these reasons and due to the high number of functional groups found in these compounds, a specific labeling procedure has to be developed for every bioactive macromolecule. Bioorthogonal strategies including the Cu-assisted Huisgen cycloaddition and its copper-free click variant, both Staudinger Ligations or the tetrazine-click reaction have been successfully applied and represent valuable alternatives for the selective introduction of fluorine-18 to overcome the afore mentioned obstacles. This comprehensive review deals with the progress and illustrates the latest developments in the field of bioorthogonal labeling with the focus on the preparation of radiofluorinated building blocks and tracers for molecular imaging.

[18F]azadibenzocyclooctyne ([18F]ADIBO): a biocompatible radioactive labeling synthon for peptides using catalyst free [3+2] cycloaddition

N-Terminally azido-modified peptides were labeled with the novel prosthetic labeling synthon [(18)F]azadibenzocyclooctyne ([(18)F]ADIBO) using copper-free azide-alkyne [3+2]-dipolar cycloaddition in high radiochemical yields (RCYs). (18)F-Labeled [(18)F]ADIBO was prepared by nucleophilic substitution of the corresponding tosylate in 21% overall RCY (EOB) in a fully automated synthesis unit within 55 min. [(18)F]ADIBO was incubated with azide-containing peptides at room temperature in the absence of toxic metal catalysts and the formation of the triazole conjugate was confirmed. Finally, the azide-alkyne [3+2]-dipolar cycloaddition was shown to proceed with 95% radiochemical yield in ethanol within 30 min, allowing for a development of a kit-like peptide labeling approach with [(18)F]ADIBO.

Multimerization of cRGD peptides by click chemistry: synthetic strategies, chemical limitations, and influence on biological properties

Integrin α(ν)β(3) is overexpressed on endothelial cells of growing vessels as well as on several tumor types, and so integrin-binding radiolabeled cyclic RGD pentapeptides have attracted increasing interest for in vivo imaging of α(ν)β(3) integrin expression by positron emission tomography (PET). Of the cRGD derivatives available for imaging applications, systems comprising multiple cRGD moieties have recently been shown to exhibit highly favorable properties in relation to monomers. To assess the synthetic limits of the cRGD-multimerization approach and thus the maximum multimer size achievable by using different efficient conjugation reactions, we prepared a variety of multimers that were further investigated in vitro with regard to their avidities to integrin α(ν)β(3.) The synthesized peptide multimers containing increasing numbers of cRGD moieties on PAMAM dendrimer scaffolds were prepared by different click chemistry coupling strategies. A cRGD hexadecimer was the largest construct that could be synthesized under optimized reaction conditions, thus identifying the current synthetic limitations for cRGD multimerization. The obtained multimeric systems were conjugated to a new DOTA-based chelator developed for the derivatization of sterically demanding structures and successfully labeled with (68)Ga for a potential in vivo application. The evaluated multimers showed very high avidities-increasing with the number of cRGD moieties-in in vitro studies on immobilized α(ν)β(3) integrin and U87MG cells, of up to 131- and 124-fold, respectively, relative to the underivatized monomer.

DOTA derivatives for site-specific biomolecule-modification via click chemistry: synthesis and comparison of reaction characteristics

Due to the high stability of its complexes with many M(2+) and M(3+)-ions, DOTA (1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-N,N',N″,N‴-tetraacetic acid) is the most commonly used chelator for the derivatization and radiolabeling of bioactive molecules. Most of the currently used DOTA derivatives comprise amine-reactive functionalities, limiting their application to the derivatization of fully protected molecules or otherwise resulting in randomly distributed conjugation sites of undefined number. Click chemistry reactions are a valuable alternative to this unspecific conjugation as they proceed efficiently and chemoselectively under mild conditions allowing a site-specific derivatization of unprotected biomolecules. In this work, we describe straightforward syntheses of DOTA derivatives containing thiol, maleimide, aminooxy, aldehyde, alkyne, and azide functionalities, amenable to the currently most often used click chemistry reactions. Furthermore, the efficiency of the respective click reactions introducing DOTA into bioactive molecules was investigated. For each of the synthesized DOTA synthons, the site-specific and efficient conjugation to Tyr(3)-octreotate could be shown. Among these, the addition and oxime formation reactions proceeded fast and without side reactions, giving the products in high yields of 64-83% after purification. The copper-catalyzed triazole formation reactions produced some side-products, giving the desired products in lower, but still reasonable overall yields of 19-25%. All synthesized peptide-DOTA-conjugates were labeled with (68)Ga in high radiochemical yields of 96-99% and high specific activities providing compounds of high purity, demonstrating the applicability of all synthons for biomolecule modification and subsequent radiolabeling.

Labeling of an antisense oligonucleotide with [(18)F]FPy5yne

Functional imaging of gene expression in vivo with short-lived positron emitter (18)F remains an unrealized goal, in part because the long reaction times and challenging protocols typically required to label nucleic acid-based molecular probes with this radionuclide (t(1/2) = 109.8 minutes). To this end, we synthesized prosthetic group 2-[(18)F]fluoro-3-(hex-5-ynyloxy)pyridine ([(18)F]FPy5yne), used previously to label peptides, and coupled it to an oligodeoxyribonucleotide with (18)F by way of a Cu(I)-mediated azide/alkyne cycloaddition reaction. HPLC-purified [(18)F]FPy5yne was ligated to a 5'-azide-modified DNA sequence antisense to mdr1 mRNA in the presence of Cu(I)-stabilizing ligand tris(benzyltriazolylmethyl)amine and 2,6-lutidine. Non-decay corrected, collected yields of the (18)F-labeled oligonucleotide from end-of-bombardment were 3.9% +/- 0.5% (n = 3; 24.6% +/- 0.5% decay corrected). Shortest preparation time was 276 minutes from start of synthesis.

Growing applications of "click chemistry" for bioconjugation in contemporary biomedical research

This update summarizes the growing application of "click" chemistry in diverse areas such as bioconjugation, drug discovery, materials science, and radiochemistry. This update also discusses click chemistry reactions that proceed rapidly with high selectivity, specificity, and yield. Two important characteristics make click chemistry so attractive for assembling compounds, reagents, and biomolecules for preclinical and clinical applications. First, click reactions are bio-orthogonal; neither the reactants nor their product's functional groups interact with functionalized biomolecules. Second, the reactions proceed with ease under mild nontoxic conditions, such as at room temperature and, usually, in water. The copper-catalyzed Huisgen cycloaddition, azide-alkyne [3 + 2] dipolar cycloaddition, Staudinger ligation, and azide-phosphine ligation each possess these unique qualities. These reactions can be used to modify one cellular component while leaving others unharmed or untouched. Click chemistry has found increasing applications in all aspects of drug discovery in medicinal chemistry, such as for generating lead compounds through combinatorial methods. Bioconjugation via click chemistry is rigorously employed in proteomics and nucleic research. In radiochemistry, selective radiolabeling of biomolecules in cells and living organisms for imaging and therapy has been realized by this technology. Bifunctional chelating agents for several radionuclides useful for positron emission tomography and single-photon emission computed tomography imaging have also been prepared by using click chemistry. This review concludes that click chemistry is not the perfect conjugation and assembly technology for all applications, but provides a powerful, attractive alternative to conventional chemistry. This chemistry has proven itself to be superior in satisfying many criteria (e.g., biocompatibility, selectivity, yield, stereospecificity, and so forth); thus, one can expect it will consequently become a more routine strategy in the near future for a wide range of applications.

Controlled coupling of peptides at their C-termini

Fusion of two proteins has become an important tool in biotechnology. Whereas biotechnological methods easily can produce C-terminal to N-terminal fused compounds, methods to couple two proteins to each of their C-termini are not easily accessible. Herein, peptides are used as models for larger proteins. A method is described exploiting the possibility to attach different reactive handles to their C-termini using a reaction catalyzed by the enzyme carboxypeptidase Y (CPY). It is possible to attach pairs of reaction handles which can react with each other to each of the peptides to be coupled. In a second step, the two modified peptides can be linked together by a chemical reaction, such as an oxime-forming reaction or a copper(I) catalyzed [2+3]-cycloaddition reaction of an azide with an alkyne.