Synthetic and biological studies of tubulin targeting c2-substituted 7-deazahypoxanthines derived from marine alkaloid rigidins.

C2-aryl- and C2-alkyl-7-deazahypoxanthines as analogues of marine alkaloid rigidins were prepared utilizing novel synthetic methods developed for the construction of the pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidine ring system. The new compounds exhibited sub-micromolar to nanomolar antiproliferative potencies against a panel of cell lines including in vitro models for drug-resistant tumors, such as glioblastoma, melanoma and non-small-cell lung cancer. A selected representative C2-methyl-7-deazahypoxanthine was found to inhibit microtubule dynamics in cancer cells, lending evidence for tubulin targeting as a mode of action for these compounds in cancer cells. The results of the docking studies utilizing the colchicine site on ß-tubulin were consistent with the observed structure-activity relationship data, including an important finding that derivatization at C2 with linear alkyl groups leads to the retention of activity, thus permitting the attachment of a biotin-containing linker for the subsequent proteomics assays. Because many microtubule-targeting compounds are successfully used to fight cancer in the clinic, the reported antitubulin rigidin analogues have significant potential as new anticancer agents.

Exceptionally strong sorption of infochemicals to activated carbon reduces their bioavailability to fish.

The addition of activated carbon (AC) to sediments is a relatively new approach to remediate contaminated sites. Activated carbon strongly sorbs hydrophobic organic contaminants, thereby reducing their bioavailability and uptake in organisms. Because of its high sorption capacity, AC might, however, also sorb other chemicals that are not contaminants but instead have ecological functions. Examples of such compounds are infochemicals or pheromones (i.e., compounds serving as chemical inter- and intraspecies information vectors). The present study investigated the sorption of 2 known infochemicals, hypoxanthine-3-N-oxide (H3NO) and pyridine-N-oxide (PNO), to 5 different powdered ACs. Sorption isotherms of these low-molecular-weight, polar fish kairomone substances appeared highly nonlinear, with logarithmic Freundlich sorption coefficients of up to 7.6. At physiologically relevant concentrations, sorption was up to 7 to 9 orders of magnitude stronger than expected on the basis of hydrophobic forces only (i.e., the compounds' log octanol-water partition coefficient, being approximately -1), indicating exceptionally strong binding to specific sites. This binding effectively reduced the bioavailability of H3NO to Sarasa goldfish, as was shown in a behavioral assay. The present study demonstrates the previously unrecognized potential of AC to sorb ecologically relevant chemicals. Whether this potential may lead to subtle, unwanted ecological effects in the field will have to be investigated in more detail during future research.

Synthesis and anti-Hantaan virus activity of N(1)-3-fluorophenyl-inosine.

As part of an ongoing effort to develop new antiviral nucleoside analogs, our interest was drawn to N(1)-aryl purines as a novel structural class and potential scaffold for drug discovery. Herein, we describe the synthesis of N(1)-3-fluorophenyl-inosine (FPI) and N(1)-3-fluorophenyl-hypoxanthine (FP-Hx) and their antiviral activity against hantaviruses. The EC(50) for FPI and FP-Hx were 94 and 234microM, respectively, against Hantaan virus. FPI was not toxic to mammalian cells at concentrations that exhibited antiviral activity. Analysis of its metabolism revealed a low conversion of FPI in Vero E6 or human cells to a 5'-triphosphate, and it was a poor substrate for human purine nucleoside phosphorylase. Further, the compound did not alter GTP levels indicating FPI does not inhibit inosine monophosphate dehydrogenase. With respect to the virus, FPI did not decrease viral RNA levels or increase the mutation frequency of the viral RNA. This suggests that the antiviral activity of FPI might be solely due to the interaction of FPI or its metabolites with viral or host proteins involved in post-replication events that would affect the levels of infectious virus released. Synthesis of other compounds structurally similar to FPI is warranted to identify more potent agents that selectively abrogate production of infectious virus.

In vitro deleterious effect of hypoxanthine in Ham's Nutrient Mixture F-10 culture medium on human oocyte fertilization and early embryonic development.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether hypoxanthine in Ham's Nutrient Mixture F-10 (GIBCO, Grand Island, NY) culture medium affects murine embryo development or the outcome of patients undergoing IVF-ET. DESIGN: For the two-cell embryo bioassay, embryos from each female were equally distributed and incubated in Ham's F-10 with or without hypoxanthine supplementation for up to 72 hours. To assess the effect of hypoxanthine in human IVF-ET, oocytes, sperm, and embryos were cultured in Ham's F-10 medium with or without hypoxanthine. Fertilization and embryo cleavage were assessed at 18 and 40 hours, respectively, after insemination. SETTING: University medical research laboratory. PATIENTS, PARTICIPANTS: Nine couples undergoing IVF-ET. RESULTS: Two-cell mouse embryos incubated for 24 hours without hypoxanthine developed 40% to morula, compared with 6.5% for the hypoxanthine group. At 72 hours, 99.5% of the embryos without hypoxanthine reached the expanded blastocyst stage with 65% of them exhibiting hatching, compared with 72% and 19.5%, respectively, for the group with hypoxanthine. Human oocytes cultured in Ham's F-10 without hypoxanthine showed higher fertilization rates than the group incubated in the presence of hypoxanthine (69% versus 53%). The proportion of cleaved embryos was not different between the two culture media; however, the rate of embryos cleaving without cytoplasmic fragments was significantly higher in the group without hypoxanthine (75% versus 35%). CONCLUSION: Ham's F-10 medium containing hypoxanthine significantly reduced embryo development in the two-cell mouse embryo bioassay. Hypoxanthine in culture medium for IVF-ET may have a deleterious effect on human gametes, leading to decreased fertilization and increased incidence of cytoplasmic fragments in the conceptuses.

The effect of L-carnitine and acetyl-L-carnitine on the disappearance of DNA single-strand breaks in human peripheral blood lymphocytes.

DNA single-strand breaks (SSBs) and their disappearance during repair incubation were determined by alkaline filter elution in freshly isolated human peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) after in vitro treatment with either the oxygen radical-generating system of xanthine oxidase (XOD) plus hypoxanthine (HYP) or the alkylating agent N-ethyl-N'-nitrosourea (ENU). The elution curves obtained with DNA from PBLs treated with XOD/HYP were markedly nonlinear, possibly as a result of a nonrandom induction of SSBs along the DNA strands. The disappearance of XOD/HYP-induced SSBs during the initial repair period was quite slow; only 20 +/- 7% (n = 6) of the induced SSBs had disappeared after a 2 1/2 h repair incubation. However, by 24 h the elution curves obtained with DNA from treated PBLs were indistinguishable from those obtained with DNA from nontreated control cells, indicating complete repair. Treatment of PBLs with ENU resulted in linear elution curves. Approximately 50% of the total amount of ENU-induced SSBs had disappeared within 1 h in PBLs from most donors; the additional SSBs were found to be persistent (Beorrigter, M.E.T.I., Mullaart, E., Berends, F., and Vijg, J. (1991) Induction and disappearance of DNA strand breaks and/or alkali-labile sites in human lymphocytes exposed to N-ethyl-N'-nitrosoureas. Carcinogenesis, 12, 77-82). Preincubation of PBLs with 5 mM L-carnitine, a trans-mitochondrial carrier of acetyl and long-chain acyl groups, or 5 mM acetyl-L-Carnitine, resulted in a more rapid disappearance of XOD/HYP-induced SSBs (48 +/- 23% and 48 +/- 30% respectively). Preincubation of PBLs with different doses of L-carnitine, before exposure to 0.5 mM ENU, increased SSB disappearance dependent on the dose and donor PBLs. In conclusion, these studies suggest that treatment with L-carnitine accelerates the disappearance of SSBs induced by oxygen radicals and alkylating agents.

Effect of zinc supplementation on resistance of cultured human skin fibroblasts toward oxidant stress.

In purified system zinc has been shown to have an antioxidant role. Its effects on the resistance of cultured cells towards oxidative stress in vitro were examined. Diploid human skin fibroblasts were grown for 21 d in culture media (RPMI 1640 containing 15% fetal calf serum) added with different zinc (Zn) concentrations (100, 125, and 150 microM as Zinc chlorur ZnCl2). In comparison, cell controls were grown in standard culture media (6.5 microM Zn). The intracellular zinc levels of treated fibroblasts increased from 3- to 7-fold (2330 +/- 120 ng/mg protein in 150-microM Zn-treated cells versus 331 +/- 21 ng/mg protein in control cells). The intracellular copper increased 3- fold whereas the iron content slightly but not significantly decreased. The index of basal lipid peroxidation measured as thiobarbituric acid reactants (TBARs) of zinc-supplemented cells was lower than that of non zinc supplemented controls (0.89 mumol/g protein in 150 microM Zn-treated cells versus 1.59 mumol/g protein in controls). At these high doses of zinc, fibroblasts expressed lower antioxidant metalloenzymes activities. Diminished TBARs in Zn treated cells tends to support that Zn acts protectively against free radical mediated damage. However when the cells were challenged with extracellular oxidant stresses mediated by hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase or hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), an increased toxicity in Zn-supplemented cells was observed. When we applied an intracellular oxidative stress as UV-B or UV-A radiation, Zn-treated fibroblasts were more resistant than cells grown in normal medium. If Zn has shown antioxidant effect in some in vitro or in vivo systems our observations clearly demonstrate that this role is not mediated by antioxidant metalloenzymes.

Cultured vascular endothelial cell susceptibility to extracellularly generated oxidant injury.

To understand better the effect of oxidant injury on vascular endothelial cells, human saphenous vein endothelial cells were cultured at atmospheric (pO2 of 150 mmHg) or low (pO2 of 40 mmHg) oxygen tensions. The cellular rates of growth, antioxidant enzyme activities (superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase), phospholipid fatty acids and cellular susceptibility to extracellularly generated oxidants (hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase) were measured. The antioxidant enzyme activities were regulated by oxygen tension and significantly differed by day 14. The cells cultured at the low oxygen tension had significantly (P less than 0.01) lower antioxidant activities than the cells cultured at the high oxygen tension. The cells cultured at an oxygen tension of 150 mmHg were more resistant to shrinkage and lipid peroxidation from the oxidants than the cells cultured at a pO2 of 40 mmHg by day 14. Since arterial and venous endothelial cells are perfused with blood at a pO2 of 100 and 40 mmHg, respectively, the postcapillary venous endothelial cells should have lower antioxidant enzyme activities than the precapillary arterial endothelial cells.

Trolox and ascorbate: are they synergistic in protecting liver cells in vitro and in vivo?

From in vitro studies involving multilamellar liposomes or other artificial systems, several groups of workers have deduced that Trolox (a water-soluble analogue of vitamin E) and ascorbate are synergistic antioxidants. Here, we demonstrate that while Trolox and ascorbate individually protect cultured hepatocytes against oxyradicals generated either with xanthine oxidase plus hypoxanthine or with hydrogen peroxide, the two antioxidants do not appear to be synergistic when used in equimolar combinations. Also, in a rat model of hepatic ischemia-reperfusion, we observed that infusion of Trolox or ascorbate (7.5-10 mumol/kg body weight) into the postischemic liver reduced the reperfusion injury by 76 or 67%, respectively. However, when both compounds were used together (each at the same dose as used separately), the organ salvage amounted to only 79%. Therefore, there is no evidence of synergism between Trolox and ascorbate in our in vitro and especially in vivo systems.

Impairment of the post-anoxic recovery of isolated rat hearts by intravascular hypoxanthine and xanthine.

Hypoxanthine is the final product of the catabolism of ATP in the stored red cell. Upon transfusion, this purine may be uptaken by the endothelial cell and oxidized in a post-ischemic or post-anoxic environment with production of oxygen-derived free radicals. We have tested this hypothesis with a isolated perfused rat heart model monitoring the recovery of the heart function from 20 min anoxia in the presence of 0.1 mM hypoxanthine or xanthine. Addition of 0.1 mM guanine minimized the fraction of hypoxanthine to be salvaged. The presence of hypoxanthine in the vascular space impaired the recovery of the end-diastolic pressure, left ventricular developed pressure, contraction rate, and coronary perfusion pressure. We conclude that intravascular hypoxanthine is oxidized by the endothelial cell xanthine oxidase contributing to the post-anoxic reoxygenation injury. Since the injury led by equimolar xanthine was nearly half of that observed for hypoxanthine, this injury appears to be correlated to the stoichiometry of the oxygen-derived free radical generating reaction.

[Xanthine oxidase activity of thymocytes in lymphocytolytic effect of hypoxanthine]. / Ksantinoksidaznaia aktivnost' timotsitov pri limfotsitoliticheskom deistvii gipoksantina.

Destruction of thymocytes, caused by incubation with hypoxanthine, was decreased distinctly after addition of allopurinol as shown by eosin staining. Lymphocytolytic effect of hypoxanthine was accompanied by considerable activation in thymocytes of endogenous xanthine oxidase, which was measured by superoxide anion production; allopurinol decreased the enzyme activity. Enzymatic activity of nucleases participating in degradation of chromatin appears to be a component of prooxidant enzymatic systems of cell.

Mutagenicity of active oxygen species in bacteria and its enzymatic or chemical inhibition.

The mono-electronic reduction of oxygen in the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system led to the formation of active species eliciting an evident and highly reproducible mutagenic response in strain TA104 of S. typhimurium. Similar effects were observed by generating oxy radicals either extracellularly or inside bacterial cells. Mutagenicity was selectively detected in TA104 and not in other Salmonella strains, which points out the importance of the hisG428 mutation and of the deletion excising the uvrB gene, as far as sensitivity to oxy radicals is concerned. The mutagenicity of the system was further enhanced in the presence of superoxide dismutase. Catalase did not affect the mutagenicity of hypoxanthine plus xanthine oxidase, whereas it inhibited the mutagenicity induced by the mixture of hypoxanthine with xanthine oxidase and superoxide dismutase. This demonstrates that not only hydrogen peroxide but also the superoxide radical anion is positive in this system. Glutathione and 2 synthetic thiols, i.e., N-acetylcysteine and alpha-mercaptopropionylglycine, besides decreasing the high spontaneous mutagenicity of TA104, efficiently prevented the mutagenicity of active oxygen species.

Iron ion-dependent modification of bases in DNA by the superoxide radical-generating system hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase.

Damage to the bases in DNA produced by the hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase system in the presence of iron ions was studied. The base products in DNA were measured using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with selected ion monitoring after acidic hydrolysis of DNA and trimethylsilylation. Products identified were cytosine glycol, thymine glycol, 5,6-dihydroxycytosine, 4,6-diamino-5-formamidopyrimidine, 8-hydroxyadenine, 2,6-diamino-4-hydroxy-5-formamidopyrimidine, and 8-hydroxyguanine. These are typical hydroxyl radical-induced products of the bases in DNA. 2,6-Diamino-4-hydroxy-5-formamidopyrimidine was the major product, followed by 8-hydroxyguanine, in DNA treated with hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase/Fe3+-EDTA. The use of Fe3+ did not cause as much damage to the bases in DNA as did the use of Fe3+-EDTA. In both systems, the formation of the products was inhibited by superoxide dismutase, catalase, dimethyl sulfoxide, mannitol, and desferrioxamine, but inhibitions were much stronger in the systems containing EDTA. Hence formation of hydroxyl radicals by a superoxide radical-assisted Fenton reaction is proposed to account for the results obtained. 2,6-Diamino-4-hydroxy-5-formamidopyrimidine, 5,6-dihydroxycytosine, 4,6-diamino-5-formamidopyrimidine, and 8-hydroxyguanine were proposed as the products in DNA to measure if one aims to measure DNA products as indices of oxidative DNA damage involving hydroxyl radicals in vivo.

Targeting of a plasma cell line with a conjugate containing xanthine oxidase and the monoclonal antibody 62B1.

We report on the preparation of an antibody-conjugated enzyme consisting of xanthine oxidase, a free-radical-producing enzyme, linked to the 62B1 monoclonal antibody, which recognizes the last steps of differentiation of B cell lineage (plasma cell and hairy cells). The conjugate specifically kills target cells, retaining both enzymic and immunological properties, without any damage to normal myeloid clonogenic efficiency. The model is suitable for ex vivo bone marrow purging in multiple myeloma patients.

Effect of endothelial injury on the responses of isolated guinea pig pulmonary venules to reduced oxygen tension.

The influence of the endothelium on pulmonary venular responses to reduced oxygen tension has not been defined. To examine this question, endothelial injury was induced in small guinea pig pulmonary artery and venule segments (effective lumen radius, 174 +/- 5 and 122 +/- 2 microns, respectively) by perfusion with either a mixture of hypoxanthine (5 mM) and xanthine oxidase (0.05 U/ml) (HX/XO) or collagenase (2 mg/ml). HX/XO significantly (p less than 0.05) reduced the relaxation of precontracted pulmonary arteries by acetylcholine (ACH), bradykinin (BK), and A-23187, and the relaxations were restored by including superoxide dismutase (40 micrograms/ml) in the HX/XO solution. However, neither HX/XO nor collagenase affected vasodilation induced by ACH, BK, and A-23187 in precontracted pulmonary venules. In contrast, HX/XO significantly (p less than 0.05) augmented the sustained contraction of pulmonary venules to hypoxia (HX/XO, 3.2 +/- 1.0 mg/mm; control, 1.0 +/- 0.5 mg/mm) and anoxia (HX/XO, 35.1 +/- 6.6 mg/mm; control, 20.3 +/- 4.0 mg/mm). Collagenase also significantly (p less than 0.05) enhanced the anoxic contractions (collagenase, 36.0 +/- 3.7 mg/mm; control, 20.9 +/- 6.8 mg/mm). Superoxide dismutase (40 micrograms/ml) and catalase (323 micrograms/ml) abolished HX-XO-induced augmentation of the hypoxic and anoxic contractions of pulmonary venules. Collagenase removed 54 +/- 8% of the venular endothelium (control, 5 +/- 1%), whereas HX/XO-exposed endothelial cells contained numerous craters. Neither gossypol (5 microM) nor methylene blue (10 microM) affected pulmonary venular contractions to reduced PO2. Endothelial damage augments the PO2-dependent contractions of the pulmonary venule, and this augmentation does not appear to be due to decreased release of endothelium-derived relaxing factor.

Cytotoxicity of the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system on V79 cells: comparison of the effects of SOD and CuDIPS.

The hypoxanthine - xanthine oxidase system generates an extracellular flux of superoxide anion radical (O2.-) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Catalase but not superoxide dismutase (SOD) protects V79 cells exposed to the hypoxanthine - xanthine oxidase system, showing that H2O2 is the major reactive oxygen species involved in the cytotoxicity of such a system. In contrast to SOD, the lipophilic SOD like compound CuII (diisopropylsalicylate)2 (CuDIPS) exhibits some protection at non cytotoxic concentration. It is also found that methanol partially protects cells exposed to the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system. It appears that in our experimental conditions (temperature, ionic strength and pH) the protective effect afforded by methanol and CuDIPS is due to the inhibition of the xanthine oxidase activity.

Free radicals generated by xanthine oxidase-hypoxanthine damage adenylate cyclase and ATPase in gerbil cerebral cortex.

The generation of superoxide radicals from xanthine oxidase-hypoxanthine in a particulate fraction of gerbil cerebral cortex influenced the activity of the synaptic enzyme adenylate cyclase, as well as Mn2+- and Na+,K+-sensitive forms of ATPase. Low concentrations of xanthine oxidase actually elevated the sensitivity of adenylate cyclase to GTP, GTP + norepinephrine (NE), and forskolin but not significantly to Mn2+. Higher levels of xanthine oxidase elicited a marked inhibition of these responses. The stimulation of adenylate cyclase mechanisms requiring GTP (GTP, forskolin, and NE) was more susceptible than was Mn2+, suggesting that the guanine nucleotide stimulatory protein was more vulnerable to free radical attack than the catalytic site of adenylate cyclase. Superoxide dismutase (SOD), but not catalase, partially protected the forskolin-sensitive enzyme from the action of xanthine oxidase-hypoxanthine. A combination of SOD plus catalase preserved enzyme responses to forskolin. In comparison, additions of SOD plus mannitol or catalase plus flunarizine were less effective. The sensitivity of the particulate ATPase to Mn2+ was more labile to the consequence of superoxide formation than Na+, K+ -ATPase. In this regard the Ca2+,Mg2+ sensitivity of the enzyme was reduced only to a marginal extent. The findings might be analogous to in vivo data in which cerebral adenylate cyclase and Na+, K+-ATPase are damaged following postischemic reperfusion in gerbils, a process thought to be mediated by free radicals.

Antitumor agents. 86. Synthesis and cytotoxicity of alpha-methylene-gamma-lactone-bearing purines.

alpha-Methylene-gamma-lactones covalently linked to adenine, hypoxanthine, and guanine were synthesized by using the convenient Reformatsky-type reaction between ethyl alpha-(bromomethyl)acrylate and the proper purine ketones. In vitro cytotoxicity data demonstrated that these compounds were active against L-1210 tissue culture cells with 3 being most potent (ED50 = 0.3 microgram/mL).

Histidine increases the frequency of chromosomal aberrations induced by the xanthine oxidase-hypoxanthine system in V79 cells.

The combined effects of the xanthine oxidase (XO)-hypoxanthine (HX) system and the various kinds of amino acids in Eagle's minimum essential medium on chromosomal aberrations were studied in Chinese hamster V79 cells. Among 13 amino acids tested, only histidine significantly increased the number of aberrant chromosomes and cytotoxicity in combination with the XO-HX system. This enhancing effect of histidine on chromosomal aberrations was dose-dependent at 0.063% - 0.25%; it was not affected by superoxide dismutase, but was strongly inhibited by catalase.

Treatment of lymphocyte cultures with a hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system induces the formation of transferable clastogenic material.

Culture medium of lymphocyte cultures that have been exposed to the superoxide generating system hypoxanthine plus xanthine oxidase (X-XO) contains substances with chromosome damaging properties. This is demonstrated by the ability of ultrafiltrates of such culture media to induce chromosomal aberrations and sister chromatid exchanges in the lymphocytes of blood test cultures. Culture medium becomes active about 15 hours after the addition of X-XO and stimulation by phytohemagglutinin. Concomitant with the accumulation of clastogenic material, assays for conjugated dienes and thiobarbituric acid-reactive material which measure lipid-peroxidation become positive in the culture media. When cells are pretreated with superoxide dismutase or glutathione peroxidase before the addition of X-XO neither clastogenic substances nor lipid peroxidation products are detected. Catalase is a less efficient protector.

Chromosomal aberrations in V79 cells induced by superoxide radical generated by the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system.

The effect of the superoxide radical, generated by the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system, on chromosomal mutation was examined in Chinese hamster V79 cells. When cells were treated with this system for 1 h in Hanks' solution, the incidence of metaphases with chromosomal aberrations was increased with hypoxanthine at concentrations of 2.5 to 10 micrograms/ml. On the other hand, in Eagle's minimum essential medium (MEM) or MEM supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, only hypoxanthine at 5 micrograms/ml plus xanthine oxidase induced chromosomal aberrations and higher concentrations of hypoxanthine were cytotoxic to V79 cells. The increased frequency of chromosomal aberrations and the cytotoxicity of hypoxanthine plus xanthine oxidase were not affected by superoxide dismutase, but were strongly inhibited by catalase.