Targeting Carbohydrate Mimetics of Tetrahydrofuran-Containing Acetogenins to Prostate Cancer.

The high potency of the tetrahydrofuran-containing acetogenins (THF-ACGs) against a broad range of human cancer cell lines has stimulated interest in structurally simpler mimetics. In this context, we have previously reported THF-ACG mimetics in which the THF and butenolide moieties of a mono-THF-ACG were replaced with carbohydrate and thiophene residues, respectively. In the present study, towards the targeting of these carbohydrate analogues to prostate cancer (PCa), we synthesized prodrugs in which a parent thiophene or butenolide congener was conjugated through a self-immolative linker to 2-[3-(1,3-dicarboxypropyl)ureido] pentanedioic acid (DUPA), a highly specific ligand for prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), which is overexpressed on prostate tumors. Both prodrugs were found to be more active against receptor positive LNCaP than receptor-negative PC-3 cells, with 2.5 and 12 times greater selectivity for the more potent thiophene analog and the less active butenolide congener, respectively. This selectivity for LNCaP over PC-3 contrasted with the behavior of the parent drugs, which showed similar or significantly higher activity for PC-3 compared to LNCaP. These data support the notion that higher activity of these DUPA-derived prodrugs against LNCaP cells is connected to their binding to PSMA and suggest that the conjugation of PSMA ligands to this family of cytotoxic agents may be effective for targeting them to PCa.

Glycopolymer Microarrays with Sub-Femtomolar Avidity for Glycan Binding Proteins Prepared by Grafted-To/Grafted-From Photopolymerizations.

We report a novel glycan array architecture that binds the mannose-specific glycan binding protein, concanavalin A (ConA), with sub-femtomolar avidity. A new radical photopolymerization developed specifically for this application combines the grafted-from thiol-(meth)acrylate polymerization with thiol-ene chemistry to graft glycans to the growing polymer brushes. The propagation of the brushes was studied by carrying out this grafted-to/grafted-from radical photopolymerization (GTGFRP) at >400 different conditions using hypersurface photolithography, a printing strategy that substantially accelerates reaction discovery and optimization on surfaces. The effect of brush height and the grafting density of mannosides on the binding of ConA to the brushes was studied systematically, and we found that multivalent and cooperative binding account for the unprecedented sensitivity of the GTGFRP brushes. This study further demonstrates the ease with which new chemistry can be tailored for an application as a result of the advantages of hypersurface photolithography.

Multivalent binding of concanavalin A on variable-density mannoside microarrays.

Interactions between cell surface glycans and glycan binding proteins (GBPs) have a central role in the immune response, pathogen-host recognition, cell-cell communication, and a myriad other biological processes. Because of the weak association between GBPs and glycans in solution, multivalent and cooperative interactions in the dense glycocalyx have an outsized role in directing binding affinity and selectivity. However, a major challenge in glycobiology is that few experimental approaches exist for examining and understanding quantitatively how glycan density affects avidity with GBPs, and there is a need for new tools that can fabricate glycan arrays with the ability to vary their density controllably and systematically in each feature. Here, we use thiol-ene reactions to fabricate glycan arrays using a recently developed photochemical printer that leverages a digital micromirror device and microfluidics to create multiplexed patterns of immobilized mannosides, where the density of mannosides in each feature was varied by dilution with an inert spacer allyl alcohol. The association between these immobilized glycans and FITC-labeled concanavalin A (ConA) - a tetrameric GBP that binds to mannosides multivalently - was measured by fluorescence microscopy. We observed that the fluorescence decreased nonlinearly with increasing spacer concentration in the features, and we present a model that relates the average mannoside-mannoside spacing to the abrupt drop-off in ConA binding. Applying these recent advances in microscale photolithography to the challenge of mimicking the architecture of the glycocalyx could lead to a rapid understanding of how information is trafficked on the cell surface.

Synthesis of C-Glycoinositols from C-Glycosylcrotylstannanes.

A strategy for the synthesis of C-pseudodisaccharides that centers on the reaction of a C-linked crotyltin and a substituted pent-4-enal and a ring-closing metathesis-alkene dihydroxylation sequence on the derived crotylation products is illustrated in the preparation of analogues of the insulin modulatory inositol galactosamine-ß-(1 → 4)-3-O-methyl-d- chiro-inositol (ß-INS-2). The modularity of this approach and versatility of the pivotal crotylation products make this a potentially general methodology for diverse libraries of C-glycoinositols.

Synthesis of the C-glycoside of α-(D)-mannose-(1 → 6)-(D)-myo-inositol.

The dimannosylatedinositol pseudotrisaccharide phospholipid of the lipoarabinomannan (LAM) component of the mycobacterial cell wall has attracted interest as a therapeutic target because of its uniqueness to mycobacteria, its assembly at an early stage in LAM biosynthesis and the immunological activity of oligosaccharides containing this subunit. Accordingly, analogues of this pseudotrisaccharide, α-d-mannose-(1 → 2)-α-d-mannose-(1 → 6)-d-myo-inositol are of interest as mechanistic probes and drug leads. C-glycosides are of special interest because of their hydrolytic stability and conformational differences compared to O-glycosides. Herein, as a prelude to C-glycoside analogues of this pseudotrisaccharide, we describe the synthesis of the C-glycoside of α-d-mannose-(1 → 6)-d-myo-inositol. The synthetic strategy centers on the elaboration of a C1-linked glycal-inositol, the glycone segment of which is assembled via an oxocarbenium ion cyclization on a thioacetal-enol ether precursor that originates from "glycone" and "aglycone" components.

Synthesis and anti-tumor activity of carbohydrate analogues of the tetrahydrofuran containing acetogenins.

The tetrahydrofuran (THF) containing annonaceous acetogenins (AAs) are attractive candidates for drug development because of their potent cytotoxicity against a wide range of tumors and their relatively simple and robust structures. Replacement of the THF segment with a sugar residue may deliver analogues with improved tumor selectivity and pharmacokinetics and are therefore attractive for drug development. As a first test to the feasibility of such structures, a set of such monosaccharide analogues was synthesized and assayed against four human tumor cell lines, cervical (HeLa), breast (MDA-MB231), T-cell leukemia (Jurkat) and prostate (PC-3). Certain analogues showed low micromolar activity that was comparable to a structurally similar, naturally occurring mono-THF acetogenin. A preliminary examination of the structure-activity profile of these carbohydrate analogues suggests that they have a similar mechanism of action as their THF congeners.

C-Glycosylcrotylboronates for the Synthesis of Glycomimetics.

The stereoselective synthesis of E- and Z- isomers of a C- mannosyl crotylpinacolboronate via Ni-promoted reactions on an allylic acetate and a diene precursor, respectively, is described. The E- and Z- isomers reacted with 1,2-O-isopropylidene glyceraldehyde in the presence or absence of (R)- and (S)- TRIP catalysts, to give predominantly 3,4-anti and 3,4-syn crotylation products, respectively, with moderate to high facial selectivity. These products were transformed to biologically relevant C-manno-disaccharides.

Oxocarbenium ion cyclizations for the synthesis of disaccharide mimetics of 2-amino-2-deoxy-pyranosides: Application to the carbasugar of ß-galactosamine-(1,4)-3-O-methyl-D-chiro-inositol.

The synthesis of the carbasugar of ß-galactosamine-(1,4)-3-O-methyl-D-chiro-inositol (INS-2), a potential tool for studying glucose metabolism, is described. The synthetic strategy, entails an oxocarbenium ion cyclization on a chiro-inositol derived, thioacetal-enol ether to give a carbocyclic enol ether, which is elaborated to the 2-amino-2-deoxy carbasugar framework via a 2-oximo derivative.

Synthesis of carbohydrate analogues of the THF-acetogenin 4-deoxyannomontacin and their cytotoxicity against human prostate cancer cell lines.

The THF containing acetogenin 4-deoxyannonmontacin (4-DAN) has attracted interest for its potent cytotoxicity against a broad range of human tumor cell lines, and relatively simple structure. Herein is described the synthesis and cytotoxicity of C-10 epimers of 4-DAN and analogues thereof comprising carbohydrate and thiophene substitutes for the THF and butenolide moieties respectively. The key synthetic ploy was the union of THF and butenolide segments or their substitutes, via an alkene cross metathesis. The different analogues showed cytotoxicity in the low micromolar to nanomolar range against the human prostate cancer cell lines LNCaP and PC3. A relatively simple mannose-linked thiophene analog was found to be similar in activity to 4-DAN.

Synthesis, gp120 binding and anti-HIV activity of fatty acid esters of 1,1-linked disaccharides.

Inspired by the anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) activity of analogues of ß-galactosylceramide (GalCer), a set of mono- and di-saccharide fatty acid esters were designed as GalCer mimetics and their binding to the V3 loop peptide of HIV-1 and anti-HIV activity evaluated. 1,1-linked Gal-Man and Glu-Man disaccharides with an ester on the Man subunit bound the V3 loop peptide and inhibited HIV infectivity in single round infection assays with the TZM-bl cell line. IC(50)'s were in the 50 µM range with no toxicity to the cells at concentrations up to 200 µM. These compounds appear to inhibit virus entry at early steps in viral infection since they were inactive if added post viral entry. Although these compounds were found to bind to the V3 loop peptide of gp120, it is not clear that this interaction is responsible for their anti-HIV activity because the relative binding affinity of closely related analogues did not correlate with their antiviral behavior. The low cytotoxicity of these 1,1-linked disaccharide fatty acid esters, combined with the easy accessibility to structurally diverse analogues make these molecules attractive leads for new topical anti-viral agents.

Synthesis of an A'B' Precursor to Angelmicin B: Product Diversification in the Suárez Lactol Fragmentation.

We describe a synthetic strategy for the angelimicin family of anthraquinoid natural products that involves converting a central highly oxygenated decalin intermediate to the AB and A'B' subunits. Herein, we report the synthesis of the bicyclic A'B' subunit that complements our earlier route to the tricyclic AB framework. The differentiating tact in the two syntheses focused on controlling the Suárez radical fragmentation of lactol precursors by modulating the substrate's structural rigidity. A more flexible lactol gave the tricyclic AB framework, whereas a more rigid substrate led to the bicyclic A'B' precursor, presumably through divergent pathways from the radical produced in the initial fragmentation step. These results establish a versatile advanced synthetic precursor for the angelimicins, and on a more general note, illustrate strategies for applying the Suárez fragmentation to diverse and complex molecular frameworks.

Synthesis of C-glycoside analogues of beta-galactosamine-(1-->4)-3-O-methyl-D-chiro-inositol and assay as activator of protein phosphatases PDHP and PP2Calpha.

The glycan beta-galactosamine-(1-4)-3-O-methyl-D-chiro-inositol, called INS-2, was previously isolated from liver as a putative second messenger-modulator for insulin. Synthetic INS-2 injected intravenously in rats is both insulin-mimetic and insulin-sensitizing. This bioactivity is attributed to allosteric activation of pyruvate dehydrogenase phosphatase (PDHP) and protein phosphatase 2Calpha (PP2Calpha). Towards identification of potentially metabolically stable analogues of INS-2 and illumination of the mechanism of enzymatic activation, C-INS-2, the exact C-glycoside of INS-2, and C-INS-2-OH the deaminated analog of C-INS-2, were synthesized and their activity against these two enzymes evaluated. C-INS-2 activates PDHP comparable to INS-2, but failed to activate PP2Calpha. C-INS-2-OH was inactive against both phosphatases. These results and modeling of INS-2, C-INS-2 and C-INS-2-OH into the 3D structure of PDHP and PP2Calpha, suggest that INS-2 binds to distinctive sites on the two different phosphatases to activate insulin signaling. Thus the carbon analog could selectively favor glucose disposal via oxidative pathways.

Olefin metathesis-iodoetherification-dehydroiodination strategy for spiroketal subunits of polyether antibiotics.

The convergent synthesis of two pentacyclic analogues of the polyether monensin A is described. Although different with respect to the configuration of the alcohol at the 3 position of the six-membered ring of the spiroketal subunit, the configuration at the acetal center in both structures is unchanged and is consistent with the anomeric effect. The key synthetic steps are the coupling of two complex segments via an olefin metathesis, and the subsequent conversion of a dihydroxyalkene to the spiroketal through an iodoetherification-dehydroiodination sequence. The compatibility of these transformations with a variety of functional groups makes the overall strategy appropriate for highly substituted frameworks.

Maskless Photochemical Printing of Multiplexed Glycan Microarrays for High-Throughput Binding Studies.

Spatially encoded glycan microarrays promise to rapidly accelerate our understanding of glycan binding in myriad biological processes, which could lead to new therapeutics and previously unknown drug targets. Here, we bring together a digital micromirror device, microfluidic introduction of inks, and advanced surface photochemistry to produce multiplexed glycan microarrays with reduced feature diameters, an increased number of features per array, and precise control of glycan density at each feature. The versatility of this platform was validated by printing two distinct glycan microarrays where, in the first, different glycans were immobilized to create a multiplexed array and, in another, the density of a single glycan was varied systematically to explore the effect of surface presentation on lectin-glycan binding. For lectin binding studies on these miniaturized microarrays, a microfluidic incubation chip was developed that channels multiple different protein solutions over the array. Using the multiplexed array, binding between eight lectin solutions and five different glycosides was determined, such that a single array can interrogate the binding between 40 lectin-glycan combinations. The incubation chip was then used on the array with varied glycan density to study the effects of glycan density on lectin binding. These results show that this novel printer could rapidly advance our understanding of critical unresolved questions in glycobiology, while simultaneously increasing the throughput and reducing the cost of these experiments.

Abrogation of Endogenous Glycolipid Antigen Presentation on Myelin-Laden Macrophages by D-Sphingosine Ameliorates the Pathogenesis of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis.

Background: Although myelin is composed of mostly lipids, the pathological role of myelin lipids in demyelinating diseases remains elusive. The principal lipid of the myelin sheath is ß-galactosylceramide (ß-Galcer). Its α-anomer (α-Galcer) has been demonstrated to be antigenically presented by macrophages via CD1d, a MHC class I-like molecule. Myelin, which is mostly composed of ß-Galcer, has been long considered as an immunologically-inert neuron insulator, because the antigen-binding cleft of CD1d is highly α-form-restricted. Results: Here, we report that CD1d-mediated antigenic presentation of myelin-derived galactosylceramide (Mye-GalCer) by macrophages contributed significantly to the progression of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Surprisingly, this presentation was recognizable by α-Galcer:CD1d-specific antibody (clone L363), but incapable of triggering expansion of iNKT cells and production of iNKT signature cytokines (IFNγ and IL-4). Likewise, a synthesized analog of Mye-Galcer, fluorinated α-C-GalCer (AA2), while being efficiently presented via CD1d on macrophages, failed to stimulate production of IFNγ and IL-4. However, AA2 significantly exacerbated EAE progression. Further analyses revealed that the antigenic presentations of both Mye-GalCer and its analog (AA2) in α-form via CD1d promoted IL-17 production from T cells, leading to elevated levels of IL-17 in EAE spinal cords and sera. The IL-17 neutralizing antibody significantly reduced the severity of EAE symptoms in AA2-treated mice. Furthermore, D-sphingosine, a lipid possessing the same hydrophobic base as ceramide but without a carbohydrate residue, efficiently blocked this glycolipid antigen presentation both in vitro and in spinal cords of EAE mice, and significantly decreased IL-17 and ameliorated the pathological symptoms. Conclusion: Our findings reveal a novel pathway from the presentation of Mye-GalCer to IL-17 production, and highlight the promising therapeutic potential of D-sphingosine for the human disorder of multiple sclerosis.

Glycoside analogs of beta-galactosylceramide, a novel class of small molecule antiviral agents that inhibit HIV-1 entry.

The interaction between HIV gp120 and galactose-containing cell surface glycolipids such as GalCer or Gb3 is known to facilitate HIV binding to both CD4+ as well as CD4- cells. In an effort to develop small molecule HIV-1 entry inhibitors with improved solubility and efficacy, we have synthesized a series of C-glycoside analogs of GalCer and tested their anti HIV-1 activity. The analogs were tested for gp120 binding using a HIV-1 (IIIB) V3-loop specific peptide. Two of the six analogs that interfered with gp120 binding also inhibited HIV Env-mediated cell-to-cell fusion and viral entry in the absence of any significant cytotoxicity. Analogs with two side chains did not show inhibition of fusion and/or infection under identical conditions. The inhibition of virus infection seen by these compounds was not coreceptor dependent, as they inhibited CXCR4, CCR5 as well as dual tropic viruses. These compounds showed inhibition of HIV entry at early steps in viral infection since the compounds were inactive if added post viral entry. Temperature-arrested state experiments showed that the compounds act at the level of virus attachment to the cells likely at a pre-CD4 engagement step. These compounds also showed inhibition of VSV glycoprotein-pseudotyped virus. The results presented here show that the glycoside derivatives of GalCer with simple side chains may serve as a novel class of small molecule HIV-1 entry inhibitors that would be active against a number of HIV isolates as well as other enveloped viruses.

Synthesis of the AB subunit of angelmicin B through a tandem alkoxy radical fragmentation-etherification sequence.

The synthesis of the tricyclic enone 2, corresponding to the AB subunit of the novel tyrosine kinase inhibitor angelmicin B, is described. The strategy centers on an intramolecular Diels-Alder (IMDA) reaction on triene 4 to provide the complex decalin 3, which is elaborated to 2. Other key steps are the formation of the THF ring in 2 through a tandem alkoxy radical fragmentation-etherification on the lactol derived from 3, and the synthesis of 4 via a ring-closing ene-yne metathesis (RCEYM).

Synthesis and antitumor activity of C-9 epimers of the tetrahydrofuran containing acetogenin 4-deoxyannoreticuin.

A highly convergent synthesis of mono-tetrahydrofuran (THF) containing acetogenins, that is based on the cross-metathesis of THF and butenolide alkene precursors, was developed. This methodology was applied to the epimers of the C-9 alcohol of 4-deoxyannoreticuin, in an attempt to assign the configuration at this position in the naturally occurring material. Unfortunately, identification of one or the other epimeric structures with the natural product was not possible because of the closeness of the physical data for all three compounds. Both C-9 epimeric analogues showed similar cytotoxicity in the low micromolar range, against two human tumor cell lines PC-3 (prostate) and Jurkat (T-cell leukemia). This result contrasts to previous studies on closely related THF acetogenins, wherein configurational variation at analogous carbinol centers resulted in a significant effect on antitumor activity.

Synthesis of the Mixed Acetal Segment of S-Glyceroplasmalopsychosine.

In this report the concept of converting carbohydrate to non-carbohydrate asymmetric molecules has been successfully exploited. The mixed acetal segment of glyceroplasmalopsychosine, a novel glycolipid has been synthesized in a stereo-specific manner using two simple sugar units. The glycosidation reaction between these two monosaccharides ensured the correct acetal stereocenter of the target molecule. Either olefin metathesis or heterogeneous Wittig reactions were used for constructing the long aliphatic chain of glyceroplasmalopsychosine.