A new family of cinchona-derived bifunctional asymmetric phase-transfer catalysts: application to the enantio- and diastereoselective nitro-Mannich reaction of amidosulfones.

A new family of bifunctional H-bond donor phase-transfer catalysts derived from cinchona alkaloids has been developed and evaluated in the enantio- and diastereoselective nitro-Mannich reaction of in situ generated N-Boc-protected imines of aliphatic, aromatic, and heteroaromatic aldehydes. Under optimal conditions, good reactivity and high diastereoselectivities (up to 24:1 dr) and enantioselectivities (up to 95% ee) were obtained using a 9-amino-9-deoxyepiquinidine-derived phase-transfer catalyst possessing a 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenylurea H-bond donor group at the 9-position.

Construction of carbo- and heterocycles using radical relay cyclizations initiated by alkoxy radicals.

An efficient method for the rapid construction of carbo- and heterocycles has been developed using radical relay cyclizations initiated by alkoxy radicals. Linear substrates were cyclized to form a wide range of cyclopentane, pyrrolidine, tetrahydropyran, and tetrahydrofuran derivatives in excellent yields. This methodology was utilized as a key step in the synthesis of the tetrahydrofuran fragment in (-)-amphidinolide K.

Standard treatments induce antigen-specific immune responses in prostate cancer.

PURPOSE: Prostate tumors express antigens that are recognized by the immune system in a significant proportion of patients; however, little is known about the effect of standard treatments on tumor-specific immunity. Radiation therapy induces expression of inflammatory and immune-stimulatory molecules, and neoadjuvant hormone therapy causes prominent T-cell infiltration of prostate tumors. We therefore hypothesized that radiation therapy and hormone therapy may initiate tumor-specific immune responses. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Pretreatment and posttreatment serum samples from 73 men with nonmetastatic prostate cancer and 50 cancer-free controls were evaluated by Western blotting and SEREX (serological identification of antigens by recombinant cDNA expression cloning) antigen arrays to examine whether autoantibody responses to tumor proteins arose during the course of standard treatment. RESULTS: Western blotting revealed the development of treatment-associated autoantibody responses in patients undergoing neoadjuvant hormone therapy (7 of 24, 29.2%), external beam radiation therapy (4 of 29, 13.8%), and brachytherapy (5 of 20, 25%), compared with 0 of 14 patients undergoing radical prostatectomy and 2 of 36 (5.6%) controls. Responses were seen within 4 to 9 months of initiation of treatment and were equally prevalent across different disease risk groups. Similarly, in the murine Shionogi tumor model, hormone therapy induced tumor-associated autoantibody responses in 5 of 10 animals. In four patients, SEREX immunoscreening of a prostate cancer cDNA expression library identified several antigens recognized by treatment-associated autoantibodies, including PARP1, ZNF707 + PTMA, CEP78, SDCCAG1, and ODF2. CONCLUSION: We show for the first time that standard treatments induce antigen-specific immune responses in prostate cancer patients. Thus, immunologic mechanisms may contribute to clinical outcomes after hormone and radiation therapy, an effect that could potentially be exploited as a practical, personalized form of immunotherapy.