Bifunctional mannoside-glucosinolate glycoconjugates as enzymatically triggered isothiocyanates and FimH ligands.

Glucosinolates are sulfur-containing secondary metabolites found in plants of the Brassicale order. They are precursors of isothiocyanate species, resulting from C-S hydrolysis catalysed by the thioglucohydrolase myrosinase. We describe the synthesis of bifunctional glucosinolate-mannoside glycoconjugates combining both the structural features of a substrate of myrosinase and a ligand of the lectin FimH. We show that these glycoconjugates serve as enzyme substrates and that myrosinase can indeed hydrolyze the glucosinolate moiety with affinities (KM, Vmax) comparable to the natural substrates glucomoringin and sinigrin. This enzymatic hydrolysis of the thioglycosidic bond led to the efficient formation of an isothiocyanate which was assessed by the formation of the corresponding dithiocarbamate derivatives. Finally, we show that our synthetic bifunctional glycoconjugates also serve as FimH ligands where the glucosinolate moiety does not hamper the interaction with the lectin. Our findings set the stage for an original bioconjugation tool, allowing for myrosinase-triggered specific labelling of lectins using glucosinolate glycoconjugates as non-toxic, water soluble isothiocyanate precursors.

Facile and rapid access to linear and truncated microcystin analogues for the implementation of immunoassays.

A series of simplified microcystin-LR analogues based on Adda [(2S,3S,8S,9S,4E,6E)-3-amino-9-methoxy-2,6,8-trimethyl-10-phenyldecadienoic acid] or its corresponding aldol precursor linked to a polypeptide moiety have been synthesised and assessed for their binding affinity by the monoclonal antibody mAb MC159, an anti-microcystin-LR mAb recently selected by us for the detection of microcystins through various immunoassay formats. Some modifications have been brought to the enantiospecific synthesis of N-Boc-Adda developed by Pearson et al. (Org. Lett., 2000, 2, 2901) which enabled us to access in an economical and time-saving manner a small library of MC-LR linear analogues. Among which Adda was chosen to synthesise, as an illustrative example, a fluorescent probe derived from this beta-amino acid. This probe was subsequently solid-phase immobilised by means of oxime ligation in order to lead to biochips suitable for microcystin detection through the SPIT-FRI method.

Toward antibody-catalyzed hydrolysis of organophosphorus poisons.

We report here our preliminary results on the use of catalytic antibodies as an approach to neutralizing organophosphorus chemical weapons. A first-generation hapten, methyl-alpha-hydroxyphosphinate Ha, was designed to mimic the approach of an incoming water molecule for the hydrolysis of exceedingly toxic methylphosphonothioate VX (1a). A moderate protective activity was first observed on polyclonal antibodies raised against Ha. The results were further confirmed by using a mAb PAR 15 raised against phenyl-alpha-hydroxyphosphinate Hb, which catalyzes the hydrolysis of PhX (1b), a less toxic phenylphosphonothioate analog of VX with a rate constant of 0.36 M(-1) x min(-1) at pH 7.4 and 25 degrees C, which corresponds to a catalytic proficiency of 14,400 M(-1) toward the rate constant for the uncatalyzed hydrolysis of 1b. This is a demonstration on the organophosphorus poisons themselves that mAbs can catalytically hydrolyze nerve agents, and a significant step toward the production of therapeutically active abzymes to treat poisoning by warfare agents.

Design and synthesis of an alpha,alpha-difluorophosphinate hapten for antibody-catalyzed hydrolysis of organophosphorus nerve agents.

In a new approach to the safe neutralization of organophosphorus chemical weapons, we designed a hapten to elicit catalytic antibodies with phosphatase activity. Here we report the synthesis of this alpha,alpha-difluorophosphinate hapten 6. Various methods for the introduction of the key alpha,alpha-difluoromethyl feature into the phosphinate hapten are discussed. The best results were obtained with the electrophilic gem-difluorinating agent N-fluorobenzenesulfonimide.