Solution conformation and relative acidities of the sugar hydroxyls of the O'-methylated derivates of the antimetabolite 9-beta-D-xylofuranosyladenine

Anti-inflammatory principles from Cordyceps sinensis

In order to explore the anti-inflammatory principles of the mycelia of Cordyceps sinensis, the crude extract and partially purified fractions were examined for their inhibition of superoxide anion generation and elastase release. Further chemical investigation of the bioactive fractions has resulted in the identification of 50 compounds, including five constituents, cordysinins A-E (1-5), reported from a natural source for the first time. In addition, compounds were examined for their anti-inflammatory activity. 1-(5-Hydroxymethyl-2-furyl)-β-carboline displayed the most significant inhibition of superoxide anion generation and elastase release with IC50 values of 0.45±0.15 and 1.68±0.32 μM, respectively.

Tautomerism and conformation of the promutagenic analogue N6-methoxy-2',3',5'-tri-O-methyladenosine

N6-Methoxy-2',3',5'-tri-O-methyladenosine crystallizes in space group P2(1)2(1)2(1) with cell dimensions a = 4.693, b = 11.412, c = 31.741 A. Least-squares refinement of diffractometer data converged at R = 0.038. The location of a hydrogen atom at N1 and the observed bond lengths and bond angles indicate unequivocally the imino tautomer of the adenine moiety. The N6-methoxy group is oriented syn to N1 and the glycosidic torsion angle XCN is -3.6 degrees, i.e. in the anti range. The furanose ring has a C2'-exo/C3'- endo pucker (P = 0.9 degrees) and is unusually flattened (tau m = 30.0 degrees). The conformations of the O-methyl groups of the ribose ring are compared with those of monomethylated nucleosides, including the biologically important 2'-O-methyl nucleosides. Evidence is presented for the existence of C-H ... N intermolecular hydrogen bonds between adenine moieties. Bearing in mind that N6-methoxyadenosine is a promutagenic analogue, the results are compared with those for the corresponding promutagenic N4-methoxycytidine. They are also discussed in relation to the tautomerism, the conformation of the N6-methoxy group, and the associated base-pairing abilities in the absence and presence of polymerases.

Conformational characteristics of the trinucleoside diphosphate xyloA2'-5'xyloA2'-5'xyloA. A nuclear magnetic resonance and CD study

In this paper the conformational analysis of the 2'-5' linked xylotrinucleotide xA2'-5'xA2'-5'xA is reported. The title compound is an analogue of A2'-5'A2'-5'A, which compound was shown to display inhibitive effects on protein synthesis. The complete 1H-NMR assignment of the high field spectral region of the xylose trimer is given. Modes of base-base stacking are extracted from coupling constant data at various temperatures. Circular dichroic (CD) spectra confirm the presence of stacked states at low temperature. Xylonucleosides are known to prefer the N-type sugar conformation. However, in the present trimer the S-type conformer is suggested to partake in stacked conformations. Two types of stacking in the two constituent dimer fragments of the trimer are proposed to rationalize the NMR data: xA(1)N-xA(2)S and xA(2)N-xA(3)S.