N-Fluoroalkylated Morpholinos - a New Class of Nucleoside Analogues.

The first concise and efficient synthesis of some fluorine-containing morpholino nucleosides has been developed. One synthetic strategy was based on the oxidative ring cleavage of the vicinal diol unit of uridine, cytidine adenosine and guanosine derivatives, followed by cyclisation of the dialdehyde intermediates by double reductive amination with fluorinated primary amines to obtain various N-fluoroalkylated morpholinos. Another approach involved cyclisation of the diformyl intermediates with ammonia source, followed by dithiocarbamate formation and desulfurization-fluorination with diethylaminosulfur trifluoride yielding the corresponding morpholine-based nucleoside analogues with a N-CF3 element in their structure.

Systematic Study of Regioselective Reductive Ring-Opening Reactions of 4,6-O-Halobenzylidene Acetals of Glucopyranosides.

Reductive openings of cyclic acetals are widely used in modern synthetic organic chemistry for the regioselective introduction of protecting groups. A systematic study was performed on the applicability and efficacy of various hydride donor and protic or Lewis acid reagent combinations in the reductive ring opening of glucosidic 4,6-halobenzylidene acetals bearing an ortho-, meta-, and para-chloro- or -bromo substituent on the benzene ring. Most of the reagent combinations tested cleaved the 4,6-O-halobenzylidene acetal rings at O4 or O6 efficiently and with the expected regioselectivity. The LiAlH4-AlCl3 and the BH3·THF-TMSOTf combinations produced the 4-O-halobenzyl ether/6-OH products with complete regioselectivity and high yields. The use of Me3N·BH3-AlCl3 reagent system in toluene was also effective in cleaving the acetal ring at O6 but was accompanied by Al-chelation-assisted debenzylation side reactions. The NaCNBH3-HCl and the Et3SiH-BF3·Et2O combinations were highly effective in yielding the 6-halobenzyl ether/4-OH derivatives. Et3SiH, in combination with TfOH, produced the 6-O-ether/4-OH products in rapid reactions but also triggered silylation and reductive halobenzylation as secondary transformations. Reductive opening of the 1,3-dioxane ring of pyranosidic 4,6-O-halobenzylidene acetals by the proper reagent combination was found to be an efficient method for the regioselective introduction of versatile halobenzyl protecting groups onto the pyranose ring.

Synthesis and Cell Growth Inhibitory Activity of Six Non-glycosaminoglycan-Type Heparin-Analogue Trisaccharides.

The design and synthesis of heparin mimetics with high anticancer activity but no anticoagulant activity is an important task in medicinal chemistry. Herein, we present the efficient synthesis of five Glc-GlcA-Glc-sequenced and one Glc-IdoA-Glc-sequenced non-glycosaminoglycan, heparin-related trisaccharides with various sulfation/sulfonylation and methylation patterns. The cell growth inhibitory effects of the compounds were tested against four cancerous human cell lines and two non-cancerous cell lines. Two d-glucuronate-containing tetra-O-sulfated, partially methylated trisaccharides displayed remarkable and selective inhibitory effects on the growth of ovary carcinoma (A2780) and melanoma (WM35) cells. Methyl substituents on the glucuronide unit proved to be detrimental, whereas acetyl substituents were beneficial to the cytostatic activity of the sulfated derivatives.

Stereoselective Synthesis of Carbon-Sulfur-Bridged Glycomimetics by Photoinitiated Thiol-Ene Coupling Reactions.

Oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates are abundant in all living organisms, taking part in a multitude of biological processes. The application of natural O-glycosides in biological studies and drug development is limited by their sensitivity to enzymatic hydrolysis. This issue made it necessary to design hydrolytically stable carbohydrate mimetics, where sulfur, carbon, or longer interglycosidic connections comprising two or three atoms replace the glycosidic oxygen. However, the formation of the interglycosidic linkages between the sugar residues in high diastereoslectivity poses a major challenge. Here, we report on stereoselective synthesis of carbon-sulfur-bridged disaccharide mimetics by the free radical addition of carbohydrate thiols onto the exo-cyclic double bond of unsaturated sugars. A systematic study on UV-light initiated radical mediated hydrothiolation reactions of enoses bearing an exocyclic double bond at C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, and C6 positions of the pyranosyl ring with various sugar thiols was performed. The effect of temperature and structural variations of the alkenes and thiols on the efficacy and stereoselectivity of the reactions was systematically studied and optimized. The reactions proceeded with high efficacy and, in most cases, with complete diastereoselectivity producing a broad array of disaccharide mimetics coupling through an equatorially oriented methylensulfide bridge.

Investigation of the Binding Affinity of a Broad Array of l-Fucosides with Six Fucose-Specific Lectins of Bacterial and Fungal Origin.

Series of multivalent α-l-fucoside containing glycoclusters and variously decorated l-fucosides were synthesized to find potential inhibitors of fucose-specific lectins and study the structure-binding affinity relationships. Tri- and tetravalent fucoclusters were built using copper-mediated azide-alkyne click chemistry. Series of fucoside monomers and dimers were synthesized using various methods, namely glycosylation, an azide-alkyne click reaction, photoinduced thiol-en addition, and sulfation. The interactions between compounds with six fucolectins of bacterial or fungal origin were tested using a hemagglutination inhibition assay. As a result, a tetravalent, α-l-fucose presenting glycocluster showed to be a ligand that was orders of magnitude better than a simple monosaccharide for tested lectins in most cases, which can nominate it as a universal ligand for studied lectins. This compound was also able to inhibit the adhesion of Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells to human epithelial bronchial cells. A trivalent fucocluster with a protected amine functional group also seems to be a promising candidate for designing glycoconjugates and chimeras.

A Modular Synthetic Approach to Isosteric Sulfonic Acid Analogues of the Anticoagulant Pentasaccharide Idraparinux.

Heparin-based anticoagulants are drugs of choice in the therapy and prophylaxis of thromboembolic diseases. Idraparinux is a synthetic anticoagulant pentasaccharide based on the heparin antithrombin-binding domain. In the frame of our ongoing research aimed at the synthesis of sulfonic acid-containing heparinoid anticoagulants, we elaborated a modular pathway to obtain a series of idraparinux-analogue pentasaccharides bearing one or two primary sulfonic acid moieties. Five protected pentasaccharides with different C-sulfonation patterns were prepared by two subsequent glycosylation reactions, respectively, using two monosaccharide and four disaccharide building blocks. Transformation of the protected derivatives into the fully O-sulfated, O-methylated sulfonic acid end-products was also studied.

Inhibitory Effect of Multivalent Rhamnobiosides on Recombinant Horseshoe Crab Plasma Lectin Interactions with Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1.

To evaluate the molecular interaction of recombinant horseshoe crab plasma lectin (rHPL) with Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1, multivalent rhamnobioside derivatives were designed. Eight rhamnoclusters with three or four α(1-3)-rhamnobiosides attached to different central cores, such as methyl gallate, pentaerythritol, and N-Boc Tris, through either an ethylene glycol or a tetraethylene glycol linker, were assembled in two consecutive azide-alkyne cycloaddition click reactions. The synthetic method embraced the preparation of two α(1-3)-rhamnobiosides with different linker arms and their conjugation, in stoichiometric or substoichiometric amounts, to propargyl ether-functionalized tri- or tetravalent scaffolds. A divalent derivative and two self-assembling rhamnobiosides were also prepared. The different architectures and valences of the rhamnoclusters provided an opportunity to evaluate the impact of topology and valency on the binding properties toward rHPL. Inhibitory ELISA data showed that all covalently linked rhamnoclusters could inhibit P. aeruginosa PAO1 recognition activity of rHPL with high efficacy. Trivalent rhamnobiosides showed a stronger inhibitory effect on P. aeruginosa PAO1 binding, and the more flexible clusters on a pentaerythritol or a Tris core were superior to the less flexible methyl gallate-based clusters. Interestingly, the length of the linker arms had a very low impact on the binding ability of the rhamnoclusters. Herein, the two trivalent derivatives on an N-Boc protected Tris central core were the best inhibitors. The self-assembling amphiphilic rhamnobioside derivatives were found to display no multivalent effect.

Large-scale synthesis of 6-deoxy-6-sulfonatomethyl glycosides and their application for novel synthesis of a heparinoid pentasaccharide trisulfonic acid of anticoagulant activity.

Multigram-scale syntheses of three 6-deoxy-6-sulfonatomethyl α-glucosides were accomplished via reactions of the corresponding primary triflate derivatives with the lithiated ethyl methanesulfonate. Chemoselective glycosylation reactions of different 6-C-sulfonatomethyl glucoside donors were studied. The sulfonic acid-containing building blocks were utilised in a novel [2+3] block synthesis of a trisulfonic acid isoster of the anticoagulant pentasaccharide idraparinux.