3'-O- and 5'-O-Propargyl Derivatives of 5-Fluoro-2'-Deoxyuridine: Synthesis, Cytotoxic Evaluation and Conformational Analysis

Triazole-Modified Nucleic Acids for the Application in Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry

This review covers studies which exploit triazole-modified nucleic acids in the range of chemistry and biology to medicine. The 1,2,3-triazole unit, which is obtained via click chemistry approach, shows valuable and unique properties. For example, it does not occur in nature, constitutes an additional pharmacophore with attractive properties being resistant to hydrolysis and other reactions at physiological pH, exhibits biological activity (i.e., antibacterial, antitumor, and antiviral), and can be considered as a rigid mimetic of amide linkage. Herein, it is presented a whole area of useful artificial compounds, from the clickable monomers and dimers to modified oligonucleotides, in the field of nucleic acids sciences. Such modifications of internucleotide linkages are designed to increase the hybridization binding affinity toward native DNA or RNA, to enhance resistance to nucleases, and to improve ability to penetrate cell membranes. The insertion of an artificial backbone is used for understanding effects of chemically modified oligonucleotides, and their potential usefulness in therapeutic applications. We describe the state-of-the-art knowledge on their implications for synthetic genes and other large modified DNA and RNA constructs including non-coding RNAs.

Nucleoside dimers analogs containing floxuridine and thymidine with unnatural linker groups: synthesis and cancer line studies. Part III

Two series of novel fluorinated nucleosides dimers with an unnatural 1,2,3-triazole linkage were synthesized. The obtained molecules were prepared using "click" chemistry approach based on copper(I) catalyzed Huisgen azide-alkyne cycloaddition. It was performed between 3'- and 5'-azido-nucleosides as the azide components, and the 3'-O- and 5'-O-propargyl-nucleosides as the alkyne components. Based on analysis of the ³ J_HH, ³ J_H1'C2 and ³ J_H1'C6 we estimated conformational preferences of sugar part and orientation around glycosidic bond. All described nucleosides dimers analogs were characterized by spectroscopic methods and evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxicity in three human cancer cell lines: cervical (HeLa), oral (KB) and breast (MCF-7).

Nucleoside dimers analogues with a 1,2,3-triazole linkage: conjugation of floxuridine and thymidine provides novel tools for cancer treatment. Part II

The fluorinated nucleoside dimers with a 1,2,3-triazole linkage are novel compounds within the field of bioorganic chemistry. We report on the synthesis and properties of two groups of nucleoside dimers analogs possessing a different arrangement of the 1,4-disubstituted 1,2,3-triazole linkage. Based on analysis of the ³J_HH, ³J_H1'C2, and ³J_H1'C6 we estimated conformational preferences of sugar part and orientation around glycosidic bond. These compounds show moderate anticancer activity, with cytostatic studies in three different cancer cell lines.

Synthesis and biological assay of new 2'-deoxyuridine dimers containing a 1,2,3-triazole linker. Part I

We describe a simple method for the synthesis of modified dinucleosides containing pyrimidine nucleoside analogues (2'-deoxyuridine, thymidine and 5-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine). Six different dimers with a 1,2,3-triazole linkage were obtained by azide-alkyne 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition (click reaction), starting from propargylated 2'-deoxyuridine and 5'-azido-nucleoside derivatives. Their cytotoxic activity was tested in five human cancer cell lines: cervical (HeLa), high grade gliomas (U-118 MG, U-87 MG, T98G), liver (HepG2), and normal human fibroblast cell line (MRC-5) using the sulforhodamine B (SRB) assay. The experiment showed that the obtained dimers with a 1,2,3-triazole moiety were very stable compounds, also in the physiological-like media, and had no anticancer activity.

O4 -Alkylated-2-Deoxyuridine Repair by O6 -Alkylguanine DNA Alkyltransferase is Augmented by a C5-Fluorine Modification

Oligonucleotides containing various adducts, including ethyl, benzyl, 4-hydroxybutyl and 7-hydroxyheptyl groups, at the O⁴ atom of 5-fluoro-O⁴ -alkyl-2'-deoxyuridine were prepared by solid-phase synthesis. UV thermal denaturation studies demonstrated that these modifications destabilised the duplex by approximately 10 °C, relative to the control containing 5-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine. Circular dichroism spectroscopy revealed that these modified duplexes all adopted a B-form DNA structure. O⁶ -Alkylguanine DNA alkyltransferase (AGT) from humans (hAGT) was most efficient at repair of the 5-fluoro-O⁴ -benzyl-2'-deoxyuridine adduct, whereas the thymidine analogue was refractory to repair. The Escherichia coli AGT variant (OGT) was also efficient at removing O⁴ -ethyl and benzyl adducts of 5-fluoro-2-deoxyuridine. Computational assessment of N1-methyl analogues of the O⁴ -alkylated nucleobases revealed that the C5-fluorine modification had an influence on reducing the electron density of the O⁴ -C_α bond, relative to thymine (C5-methyl) and uracil (C5-hydrogen). These results reveal the positive influence of the C5-fluorine atom on the repair of larger O⁴ -alkyl adducts to expand knowledge of the range of substrates able to be repaired by AGT.