Variability in the Responses of Hepatitis B Virus D-Subgenotypes to Antiviral Therapy: Designing Pan-D-Subgenotypic Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors.

Nucleos(t)ide analogues entecavir (ETV) and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) are recommended as first-line monotherapies for chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Multiple HBV genotypes/subgenotypes have been described, but their impact on treatment response remains largely elusive. We investigated the effectiveness of ETV/TDF on HBV/D-subgenotypes, D1/D2/D3/D5, studied the structural/functional differences in subgenotype-specific reverse transcriptase (RT) domains of viral polymerase, and identified novel molecules with robust inhibitory activity on various D-subgenotypes. Transfection of Huh7 cells with full-length D1/D2/D3/D5 and in vitro TDF/ETV susceptibility assays demonstrated that D1/D2 had greater susceptibility to TDF/ETV while D3/D5 exhibited poorer response. Additionally, HBV load was substantially reduced in TDF-treated CHB patients carrying D1/D2 but minimally reduced in D3/D5-infected patients. Comparison of RT sequences of D-subgenotypes led to identification of unique subgenotype-specific residues, and molecular modeling/docking/simulation studies depicted differential bindings of TDF/ETV to the active site of their respective RTs. Replacement of signature residues in D3/D5 HBV clones with corresponding amino acids seen in D1/D2 improved their susceptibility to TDF/ETV. Using high throughput virtual screening, we identified N(9)-[3-fluoro-2-(phosphonomethoxy)propyl] (FPMP) derivatives of purine bases, including N6-substituted (S)-FPMP derivative of 2,6-diaminopurine (DAP) (OB-123-VK), as potential binders of RT of different D-subgenotypes. We synthesized (S)-FPMPG prodrugs (FK-381-FEE/FK-381-SEE/FK-382) and tested their effectiveness along with OB-123-VK. Both OB-123-VK and FK-381-FEE exerted similar antiviral activities against all D-subgenotypes, although FK-381-FEE was more potent. Our study highlighted the natural variation in therapeutic response of D1/D2/D3/D5 and emphasized the need for HBV subgenotype determination before treatment. Novel molecules described here could benefit future design/discovery of pan-D-subgenotypic inhibitors. IMPORTANCE Current treatment of chronic hepatitis B relies heavily on nucleotide/nucleoside analogs in particular, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and entecavir (ETV) to keep HBV replication under control and prevent end-stage liver diseases. However, it was unclear whether the therapeutic effects of TDF/ETV differ among patients infected with different HBV genotypes and subgenotypes. HBV genotype D is the most widespread of all HBV genotypes and multiple D-subgenotypes have been described. We here report that different subgenotypes of HBV genotype-D exhibit variable response toward TDF and ETV and this could be attributed to naturally occurring amino acid changes in the reverse transcriptase domain of the subgenotype-specific polymerase. Further, we identified novel molecules and also synthesized prodrugs that are equally effective on different D-subgenotypes and could facilitate management of HBV/D-infected patients irrespective of D-subgenotype.

Phosphate-Based Self-Immolative Linkers for Tuneable Double Cargo Release.

Invited for the cover of this issue are Eliska Procházková, Ondrej Baszczynski, and colleagues at IOCB (Prague) and Charles University (Prague). The image depicts phosphorus-based, double-cargo, self-immolative linkers capable of releasing both cargos sequentially after activation by light. Read the full text of the article at 10.1002/chem.202101805.

Phosphate-Based Self-Immolative Linkers for Tuneable Double Cargo Release.

Phosphorus-based self-immolative (SI) linkers offer a wide range of applications, such as smart materials and drug-delivery systems. Phosphorus SI linkers are ideal candidates for double-cargo delivery platforms because they have a higher valency than carbon. A series of substituted phosphate linkers was designed for releasing two phenolic cargos through SI followed by chemical hydrolysis. Suitable modifications of the lactate spacer increased the cargo release rate significantly, from 1 day to 2 hours or 5 minutes, as shown for linkers containing p-fluoro phenol. In turn, double cargo linkers bearing p-methyl phenol released their cargo more slowly (4 days, 4 hours, and 15 minutes) than their p-fluoro analogues. The α-hydroxyisobutyrate linker released both cargos in 25 minutes. Our study expands the current portfolio of SI constructs by providing a double cargo delivery option, which is crucial to develop universal SI platforms.

NMR Structure Elucidation of Naphthoquinones from Quambalaria cyanescens.

Naphthoquinones isolated from Quambalaria cyanescens (quambalarines) are natural pigments possessing significant cytotoxic and antimicrobial properties. Determining the structure of naphthoquinone compounds is important for the understanding of their biological activities and the informed synthesis of related analogues. Identifying quambalarines is challenging, because they contain a hydroxylated naphthoquinone scaffold and have limited solubility. Here, we report a detailed structural study of quambalarine derivatives, which form strong intramolecular hydrogen bonds (IMHBs) that enable the formation of several tautomers; these tautomers may complicate structural investigation due to their fast interconversion. To investigate tautomeric equilibria and identify new quambalarines, we complemented the experimental NMR spectroscopy data with density functional theory (DFT) calculations.

Phosphate-Based Self-Immolative Linkers for the Delivery of Amine-Containing Drugs.

Amine-containing drugs often show poor pharmacological properties, but these disadvantages can be overcome by using a prodrug approach involving self-immolative linkers. Accordingly, we designed l-lactate linkers as ideal candidates for amine delivery. Furthermore, we designed linkers bearing two different cargos (aniline and phenol) for preferential amine cargo release within 15 min. Since the linkers carrying secondary amine cargo showed high stability at physiological pH, we used our strategy to prepare phosphate-based prodrugs of the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin. Therefore, our study will facilitate the rational design of new and more effective drug delivery systems for amine-containing drugs.

Synthesis of Terminal Ribose Analogues of Adenosine 5'-Diphosphate Ribose as Probes for the Transient Receptor Potential Cation Channel TRPM2.

TRPM2 (transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily M, member 2) is a nonselective cation channel involved in the response to oxidative stress and in inflammation. Its role in autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases makes it an attractive pharmacological target. Binding of the nucleotide adenosine 5'-diphosphate ribose (ADPR) to the cytosolic NUDT9 homology (NUDT9 H) domain activates the channel. A detailed understanding of how ADPR interacts with the TRPM2 ligand binding domain is lacking, hampering the rational design of modulators, but the terminal ribose of ADPR is known to be essential for activation. To study its role in more detail, we designed synthetic routes to novel analogues of ADPR and 2'-deoxy-ADPR that were modified only by removal of a single hydroxyl group from the terminal ribose. The ADPR analogues were obtained by coupling nucleoside phosphorimidazolides to deoxysugar phosphates. The corresponding C2″-based analogues proved to be unstable. The C1″- and C3″-ADPR analogues were evaluated electrophysiologically by patch-clamp in TRPM2-expressing HEK293 cells. In addition, a compound with all hydroxyl groups of the terminal ribose blocked as its 1″-ß- O-methyl-2″,3″- O-isopropylidene derivative was evaluated. Removal of either C1″ or C3″ hydroxyl groups from ADPR resulted in loss of agonist activity. Both these modifications and blocking all three hydroxyl groups resulted in TRPM2 antagonists. Our results demonstrate the critical role of these hydroxyl groups in channel activation.

Reactive cyclic intermediates in the ProTide prodrugs activation: trapping the elusive pentavalent phosphorane.

Nucleotide prodrugs (ProTides) based on phosphate or phosphonate compounds are potent and successfully marketed antiviral drugs. Although their biological properties are well explored, experimental evidence on the mechanism of their activation pathway is still missing. In this study, we synthesized two ProTide analogues, which can be activated by UV light. Using 31P and 13C NMR spectroscopy with in situ irradiation, we followed the ProTide activation pathway in various solvents, and we detected the first proposed intermediate and the monoamidate product. Furthermore, we used mass spectrometry (MS) coupled with infrared spectroscopy in the gas phase to detect and to characterize the elusive cyclic pentavalent phosphorane and cyclic acyl phosphoramidate intermediates. Our combined NMR and MS data provided the first experimental evidence of the cyclic intermediates in the activation pathway of ProTide prodrugs.

Medicinal chemistry of fluorinated cyclic and acyclic nucleoside phosphonates.

The fluorine atom plays an important role in medicinal chemistry because fluorine substitution has a strong impact on the physical, chemical, and biological properties of bioactive compounds. Such fluorine modifications have also been extensively studied among the pharmaceutically important class of nucleoside phosphonates, nucleotide analogues in which the phosphate group is replaced by the enzymatically and chemically stable phosphonate moiety. The fluorinated nucleoside phosphonates abound with antiviral, antiparasitic, and anticancer properties because they are able to act as inhibitors of important enzymes of nucleoside/nucleotide metabolism. In this paper, we review the biological properties of cyclic and acyclic nucleoside phosphonates modified by the attachment of one or more fluorine atoms to various parts of the molecule, namely to nucleobases, alkylphosphonate groups, cyclic or acyclic linkers, or to prodrug moieties.

Design and Synthesis of Novel HIV-1 NNRTIs with Bicyclic Cores and with Improved Physicochemical Properties.

Non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) represent cornerstones of current regimens for treatment of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infections. However, NNRTIs usually suffer from low aqueous solubility and the emergence of resistant viral strains. In the present work, novel bicyclic NNRTIs derived from etravirine (ETV) and rilpivirine (RPV), bearing modified purine, tetrahydropteridine, and pyrimidodiazepine cores, were designed and prepared. Compounds 2, 4, and 6 carrying the acrylonitrile moiety displayed single-digit nanomolar activities against the wild-type (WT) virus (EC50 = 2.5, 2.7, and 3.0 nM, respectively), where the low nanomolar activity was retained against HXB2 (EC50 = 2.2-2.8 nM) and the K103N and Y181C mutated strains (fold change, 1.2-6.7×). Most importantly, compound 2 exhibited significantly improved phosphate-buffered saline solubility (10.4 µM) compared to ETV and RPV (≪1 µM). Additionally, the binding modes of compounds 2, 4, and 6 to the reverse transcriptase were studied by X-ray crystallography.

Design, Synthesis, Biological Evaluation, and Crystallographic Study of Novel Purine Nucleoside Phosphorylase Inhibitors.

Purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) is a well-known molecular target with potential therapeutic applications in the treatment of T-cell malignancies and/or bacterial/parasitic infections. Here, we report the design, development of synthetic methodology, and biological evaluation of a series of 30 novel PNP inhibitors based on acyclic nucleoside phosphonates bearing a 9-deazahypoxanthine nucleobase. The strongest inhibitors exhibited IC50 values as low as 19 nM (human PNP) and 4 nM (Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mt) PNP) and highly selective cytotoxicity toward various T-lymphoblastic cell lines with CC50 values as low as 9 nM. No cytotoxic effect was observed on other cancer cell lines (HeLa S3, HL60, HepG2) or primary PBMCs for up to 10 µM. We report the first example of the PNP inhibitor exhibiting over 60-fold selectivity for the pathogenic enzyme (MtPNP) over hPNP. The results are supported by a crystallographic study of eight enzyme-inhibitor complexes and by ADMET profiling in vitro and in vivo.

An enzymatic glycosylation of nucleoside analogues using ß-galactosidase from Escherichia coli.

A new enzymatic method for the synthesis of ß-galactosides of nucleosides and acyclic nucleoside analogues has been developed, using ß-galactosidase from Escherichia coli as a catalyst and lactose as a sugar donor. The method is very rapid, feasible and last but not least inexpensive. Its applicability has been proven for a broad variety of possible substrates with respect to its scaling up for preparative use. Five new compounds from a series of nucleoside and acyclic nucleoside analogues have been prepared on a scale of several hundred milligrams, in all cases revealing very good results of the method concerning the reproducibility of the reaction yields and simplicity of the purification process.

Synthesis of 9-phosphonoalkyl and 9-phosphonoalkoxyalkyl purines: evaluation of their ability to act as inhibitors of Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax and human hypoxanthine-guanine-(xanthine) phosphoribosyltransferases.

The purine salvage enzyme, hypoxanthine-guanine-(xanthine) phosphoribosyltransferase [HG(X)PRT], catalyses the synthesis of the purine nucleoside monophosphates, IMP, GMP or XMP essential for DNA/RNA production. In protozoan parasites, such as Plasmodium, this is the only route available for their synthesis as they lack the de novo pathway which is present in human cells. Acyclic nucleoside phosphonates (ANPs), analogs of the purine nucleoside monophosphates, have been found to inhibit Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) HGXPRT and Plasmodium vivax (Pv) HGPRT with K(i) values as low as 100 nM. They arrest parasitemia in cell based assays with IC(50) values of the order of 1-10 µM. ANPs with phosphonoalkyl and phosphonoalkoxyalkyl moieties linking the purine base and phosphonate group were designed and synthesised to evaluate the influence of this linker on the potency and/or selectivity of the ANPs for the human and malarial enzymes. This data shows that variability in the linker, as well as the positioning of the oxygen in this linker, influences binding. The human enzyme binds the ANPs with K(i) values of 0.5 µM when the number of atoms in the linker was 5 or 6 atoms. However, the parasite enzymes have little affinity for such long chains unless oxygen is included in the three-position. In comparison, all three enzymes have little affinity for ANPs where the number of atoms linking the base and the phosphonate group is of the order of 2-3 atoms. The chemical nature of the purine base also effects the K(i) values. This data shows that both the linker and the purine base play an important role in the binding of the ANPs to these three enzymes.

An efficient microwave-assisted synthesis and biological properties of polysubstituted pyrimidinyl- and 1,3,5-triazinylphosphonic acids.

Polysubstituted pyrimidinylphosphonic and 1,3,5-triazinylphosphonic acids with potential biological properties were prepared in high yields by the microwave-assisted Michaelis-Arbuzov reaction of trialkyl phosphite with the corresponding halopyrimidines and halo-1,3,5-triazines, respectively, followed by the standard deprotection of the phosphonate group using TMSBr in acetonitrile. 4,6-Diamino-5-chloropyrimidin-2-ylphosphonic acid (7a) was found to exhibit a weak to moderate anti-influenza activity (28-50 µM) and may represent a novel hit for further SAR studies and antiviral improvement.

31P NMR parameters may facilitate the stereochemical analysis of phosphorus-containing compounds.

Conventional Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) analysis relies on H-H/C-H interactions. However, these interactions are sometimes insufficient for an accurate and precise NMR analysis. In this study, we show that 31P NMR parameters can provide critical structural insights into the stereochemistry of phosphorus-containing compounds. For this purpose, we prepared a set of model phosphorus-based proline derivatives, separated diastereoisomers, and determined their absolute configuration by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. After supplementing these results by electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectroscopy, we combined experimental data and DFT calculations from our model compounds to perform a detailed conformational analysis, thereby determining their relative configuration. Overall, our findings establish an experimental paradigm for combining 31P NMR spectroscopy with other optical methods to facilitate the stereochemical analysis of phosphorus-containing compounds.

Piperazine-Modified Ketoconazole Derivatives Show Increased Activity against Fungal and Trypanosomatid Pathogens.

Ketoconazole (KTZ) is an imidazole drug applied topically to treat numerous skin infections. However, as a systemic antifungal, KTZ' efficacy and safety no longer justify its use as a first-line treatment. Azole conjugates often display higher solubility and better antifungal activities than their parent azoles. Accordingly, we aimed at developing suitable linkers for clickable azole conjugation with a second antifungal molecule, and targeted drug delivery towards improving antifungal activity. For its low price and high availability, we selected KTZ as a molecular scaffold to introduce such chemical modifications. We prepared a series of piperazine-modified KTZ derivatives and we evaluated their in vitro antifungal and antitrypanosomal activity against fourteen strains of pathogenic fungi and two strains of Trypanosoma parasites. Several compounds were more effective against the pathogens than KTZ. Compound 5 was 24 times more potent against Aspergillus flavus and 8 times more potent against A. fumigatus than KTZ, with similarly low cytotoxicity to HEK cells up to 100 µM. Derivative 6 had 9- and 7-fold higher activity against T. brucei gambiense and T. brucei brucei than KTZ, respectively, and inhibited trypanosoma growth at single micromolar EC50 values. Combined, our findings will foster further research of piperazine-modified KTZs as promising antifungal and antiparasitic drugs towards enhancing the properties of both KTZ and other azole derivatives.

Synthesis and antiviral activity of N9-[3-fluoro-2-(phosphonomethoxy)propyl] analogues derived from N6-substituted adenines and 2,6-diaminopurines.

An efficient method for the synthesis of N(9)-[3-fluoro-2-(phosphonomethoxy)propyl] (FPMP) derivatives of purine bases has been developed. Both (R)- and (S)-enantiomers of the N(6)-substituted FPMP derivatives of adenine and 2,6-diaminopurine were prepared and their anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and anti-Moloney murine sarcoma virus (MSV) activity was evaluated. Whereas none of the 6-substituted FPMPA derivatives showed any antiviral activity, several FPMPDAP derivatives had a moderate antiretroviral activity. Moreover, the data obtained from the study of the substrate activity of the active derivatives towards N(6)-methyl-AMP aminohydrolase support the notion that the studied N(6)-substituted FPMPDAP derivatives act as prodrugs of the antiretroviral FPMPG analogues.

Phosphate linkers with traceable cyclic intermediates for self-immolation detection and monitoring.

Self-immolation (SI) is the key principle of ProTide nucleotide prodrugs such as remdesivir, which is currently used to treat COVID-19 patients. Developing novel tailor-made SI systems requires new analytical methods for the detection and monitoring of SI. We developed a robust method for SI analysis using novel phosphate-based SI linkers with NMR traceable cyclic intermediates to distinguish SI from alternative fragmentation pathways and to monitor cargo release in real time.

Discovery of Modified Amidate (ProTide) Prodrugs of Tenofovir with Enhanced Antiviral Properties.

This study describes the discovery of novel prodrugs bearing tyrosine derivatives instead of the phenol moiety present in FDA-approved tenofovir alafenamide fumarate (TAF). The synthesis was optimized to afford diastereomeric mixtures of novel prodrugs in one pot (yields up to 86%), and the epimers were resolved using a chiral HPLC column into fast-eluting and slow-eluting epimers. In human lymphocytes, the most efficient tyrosine-based prodrug reached a single-digit picomolar EC50 value against HIV-1 and nearly 300-fold higher selectivity index (SI) compared to TAF. In human hepatocytes, the most efficient prodrugs exhibited subnanomolar EC50 values for HBV and up to 26-fold higher SI compared to TAF. Metabolic studies demonstrated markedly higher cellular uptake of the prodrugs and substantially higher levels of released tenofovir inside the cells compared to TAF. These promising results provide a strong foundation for further evaluation of the reported prodrugs and their potential utility in the development of highly potent antivirals.

Helicobacter pylori Xanthine-Guanine-Hypoxanthine Phosphoribosyltransferase-A Putative Target for Drug Discovery against Gastrointestinal Tract Infections.

Helicobacter pylori (Hp) is a human pathogen that lives in the gastric mucosa of approximately 50% of the world's population causing gastritis, peptic ulcers, and gastric cancer. An increase in resistance to current drugs has sparked the search for new Hp drug targets and therapeutics. One target is the disruption of nucleic acid production, which can be achieved by impeding the synthesis of 6-oxopurine nucleoside monophosphates, the precursors of DNA and RNA. These metabolites are synthesized by Hp xanthine-guanine-hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (XGHPRT). Here, nucleoside phosphonates have been evaluated, which inhibit the activity of this enzyme with Ki values as low as 200 nM. The prodrugs of these compounds arrest the growth of Hp at a concentration of 50 µM in cell-based assays. The kinetic properties of HpXGHPRT have been determined together with its X-ray crystal structure in the absence and presence of 9-[(N-3-phosphonopropyl)-aminomethyl-9-deazahypoxanthine, providing a basis for new antibiotic development.

Synthesis of phosphonoacetate analogues of the second messenger adenosine 5'-diphosphate ribose (ADPR).

Adenosine 5'-diphosphate ribose (ADPR) is an intracellular signalling molecule generated from nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+). Synthetic ADPR analogues can shed light on the mechanism of activation of ADPR targets and their downstream effects. Such chemical biology studies, however, are often challenging due to the negatively charged pyrophosphate, also sensitive to cellular pyrophosphatases, and prior work on an initial ADPR target, the transient receptor potential cation channel TRPM2, showed complete pyrophosphate group replacement to be a step too far in maintaining biological activity. Thus, we designed ADPR analogues with just one of the negatively charged phosphate groups removed, by employing a phosphonoacetate linker. Synthesis of two novel phosphonoacetate ADPR analogues is described via tandem N,N'-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide coupling to phosphonoacetic acid. Neither analogue, however, showed significant agonist or antagonist activity towards TRPM2, underlining the importance of a complete pyrophosphate motif in activation of this particular receptor.