High Affinity Immobilization of Proteins Using the CrAsH/TC Tag.

Protein microarrays represent important tools for biomedical analysis. We have recently described the use of the biarsenical-tetracysteine (TC) tag for the preparation of protein microarrays. The unique feature of this tag enables the site-specific immobilization of TC-containing proteins on biarsenical-modified surfaces, resulting in a fluorescence enhancement that allows the direct quantification of the immobilized proteins. Moreover, the reversibility of the binding upon incubation with large quantities of thiols permits the detachment of the proteins from the surface, thereby enabling recovery of the substrate to extend the life time of the slide. Herein, we describe our recent results that further extend the applicability of the CrAsH/TC tag to the fabrication of biochips. With this aim, the immobilization of proteins on surfaces has been investigated using two different spacers and two TC tags, the minimal TC sequence (CCPGCC) and an optimized motif (FLNCCPGCCMEP). While the minimal peptide motif enables a rapid recycling of the slide, the optimized TC sequence reveals an increased affinity due to its greater resistance to displacement by thiols. Moreover, the developed methodology was applied to the immobilization of proteins via on-chip ligation of recombinant protein thioesters.

Site-specific, reversible and fluorescent immobilization of proteins on CrAsH-modified surfaces for microarray analytics.

A novel technique for protein immobilization onto CrAsH-modified surfaces is presented. This approach enables an efficient, reversible and fluorogenic immobilization of proteins. Moreover, expressed proteins can also be directly immobilized from cellular lysates without prior purification. The immobilized proteins are suitable for protein-protein interaction studies and the fluorescence enhancement upon immobilization can be employed for the direct detection of the immobilized protein without the need for secondary detection methods.

Synthesis of lipidated peptides.

One of the main reasons of the high diversity and complexity of the human proteome compared to the human genome is the extensive work performed by the posttranslational machinery to incorporate numerous different functionalities on proteins. The covalent attachment of chemical moieties in proteins after translation is known as posttranslational modification (PTM) and has a crucial role in controlling protein localization and activity. Relevant modifications include phosphorylation, carboxymethylation, glycosylation, acetylation, or lipidation. Despite their essential role on protein function, the synthesis of fully posttranslationally modified proteins has been challenging. However, important advances on chemical biology have enabled the synthesis of fully posttranslationally modified peptides and proteins. As a result of this, peptides bearing, i.e., phosphorylated amino acids, C-terminal methylations, lipid modifications, or nonnatural tags have become accessible. These peptides, as well as the corresponding proteins obtained using ligation techniques, have been invaluable tools in biochemical and biophysical studies. As an example of these advances, this chapter describes the methods developed for the synthesis of lipidated peptides from the Ras and Rab families.

Discovery and pharmacological profile of new 1H-indazole-3-carboxamide and 2H-pyrrolo[3,4-c]quinoline derivatives as selective serotonin 4 receptor ligands.

Since the discovery of the serotonin 4 receptor (5-HT(4)R), a large number of receptor ligands have been studied. The safety concerns and the lack of market success of these ligands have mainly been attributed to their lack of selectivity. In this study we describe the discovery of N-[(4-piperidinyl)methyl]-1H-indazole-3-carboxamide and 4-[(4-piperidinyl)methoxy]-2H-pyrrolo[3,4-c]quinoline derivatives as new 5-HT(4)R ligands endowed with high selectivity over the serotonin 2A receptor and human ether-a-go-go-related gene potassium ion channel. Within these series, two molecules (11 ab and 12 g) were identified as potent and selective 5-HT(4)R antagonists with good in vitro pharmacokinetic properties. These compounds were evaluated for their antinociceptive action in two analgesia animal models. 12 g showed a significant antinociceptive effect in both models and is proposed as an interesting lead compound as a 5-HT(4)R antagonist with analgesic action.

Design, synthesis, and structure-activity relationship of N-arylnaphthylamine derivatives as amyloid aggregation inhibitors.

Dyes like CR are able to inhibit the aggregation of Aß fibrils. Thus, a screening of a series of dyes including ABBB (1) was performed. Its main component 2 tested in an in vitro assay (i.e., ThT assay) showed good potency at inhibiting fibrils association. Congeners 4-9 have been designed and synthesized as inhibitors of Aß aggregation. A number of these newly synthesized compounds have been found to be active in the ThT assay with IC(50) of 1-57.4 µM. The most potent compound of this series, 4k, showed micromolar activity in this test. Another potent derivative 4q (IC(50) = 5.6 µM) rapidly crossed the blood-brain barrier, achieving whole brain concentrations higher than in plasma. So 4q could be developed to find novel potent antiaggregating ßA agents useful in Alzheimer disease as well as other neurological diseases characterized by deposits of amyloid aggregates.

Mass spectrometric characterization of tamoxifene metabolites in human urine utilizing different scan parameters on liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry.

Different liquid chromatographic/tandem mass spectrometric (LC/MS/MS) scanning techniques were considered for the characterization of tamoxifene metabolites in human urine for anti-doping purpose. Five different LC/MS/MS scanning methods based on precursor ion scan (precursor ion scan of m/z 166, 152 and 129) and neutral loss scan (neutral loss of 72 Da and 58 Da) in positive ion mode were assessed to recognize common ions or common losses of tamoxifene metabolites. The applicability of these methods was checked first by infusion and then by the injection of solution of a mixture of reference standards of four tamoxifene metabolites available in our laboratory. The data obtained by the analyses of the mixture of the reference standards showed that the five methods used exhibited satisfactory results for all tamoxifene metabolites considered at a concentration level of 100 ng/mL, whereas the analysis of blank urine samples spiked with the same tamoxifene metabolites at the same concentration showed that the neutral loss scan of 58 Da lacked sufficient specificity and sensitivity. The limit of detection in urine of the compounds studied was in the concentration range 10-100 ng/mL, depending on the compound structure and on the selected product ion. The suitability of these approaches was checked by the analysis of urine samples collected after the administration of a single dose of 20 mg of tamoxifene. Six metabolites were detected: 4-hydroxytamoxifene, 3,4-dihydroxytamoxifene, 3-hydroxy-4-methoxytamoxifene, N-demethyl-4-hydroxytamoxifene, tamoxifene-N-oxide and N-demethyl-3-hydroxy-4-methoxytamoxifene, which is in conformity to our previous work using a time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer in full scan acquisition mode.

Novel quinolinonyl diketo acid derivatives as HIV-1 integrase inhibitors: design, synthesis, and biological activities.

Novel quinolinonyl diketo acids were designed to obtain integrase (IN) inhibitors selectively active against the strand transfer (ST) step of the HIV integration process. Those new compounds are characterized by a single aryl diketo acid (DKA) chain in comparison to 4, a bifunctional diketo acid reported by our group as an anti-IN agent highly potent against both the 3'-processing and ST steps. Compound 6d was the most potent derivative in IN enzyme assays, while 6i showed the highest potency against HIV-1 in acutely infected cells. The selective inhibition of ST suggested the newly designed monofunctional DKAs bind the IN-DNA acceptor site without affecting the DNA donor site.