Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors: importance of the amide carbonyl of mercaptoacyl amino acids for hydrogen bonding to the enzyme.

A series of mercaptoacyl amino acids and related compounds was synthesized and evaluated for inhibition of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) in order to determine the nature and importance of the putative interaction between ACE and the amide moiety of inhibitors such as captopril (3-mercapto-2-methylpropanoyl-L-proline). It was concluded that the interaction involves a hydrogen bond from a donor site on ACE to the oxygen of the amide carbonyl. Compounds in which the amide moiety is replaced by other groups (ester, ketone, sulfonamide) capable of accepting a hydrogen bond are effective inhibitors, but compounds in which only the geometrical features of the amide are retained are ineffective inhibitors. The presence of an NH group is not necessary for effective inhibition. The activity of a series of mercaptoacyl cycloalkyl carboxylic acids parallels the activity of the isosteric series of mercaptoacyl imino acids.

Synthesis, characterization, and imaging performance of a new class of macrocyclic hepatobiliary MR contrast agents.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of substituent lipophilicity, substituent position, and overall charge on the hepatobiliary clearance and tolerance of a series of aromatic ring-containing macrocyclic Gd chelates to select a candidate compound for evaluation as a hepatobiliary imaging agent. METHODS: Hepatobiliary clearance was studied in rats. Tissue distribution and tolerance were studied in mice. Imaging was performed in cats, rabbits, and Rhesus monkeys using T1-weighted pulse sequences or T1-weighted breath-hold pulse sequences. RESULTS: All the compounds were excreted bimodally. Gd-2,5-BPA-DO3A (15d) was found to have the optimal combination of hepatobiliary clearance (47% in rats, 29% in mice) and tolerance (minimum lethal dose 5.0 mmol/kg). Initial imaging studies in cats demonstrated the feasibility of Gd-2,5-BPA-DO3A for hepatic imaging. In rabbits with implanted VX-2 adenocarcinoma as a model for metastatic liver disease, Gd-2,5-BPA-DO3A provided sustained hepatic signal intensity (SI) enhancement and lesion conspicuity over a 120-minute imaging time course. In Rhesus monkeys with normal liver function, Gd-2,5-BPA-DO3A afforded sustained hepatic SI enhancement and a time-dependent increase in gallbladder SI over the entire 90-minute imaging time course. CONCLUSIONS: Gd-2,5-BPA-DO3A provides dramatic and sustained SI enhancement of hepatic tissue in cats, rabbits, and Rhesus monkeys that was superior in all respects to the extracellular space MRI agent, Gd-HP-DO3A, that was employed as a control.

Chemical modifications of the active site of Streptomyces R61 DD-carboxypeptidase.

The DD-carboxypeptidase of Streptomyces R61 is an exocellular enzyme related to the bacterial peptidoglycan cross-linking enzymes, and, like them, is inhibited by penicillin. The active-site reagents methanesulfonyl fluoride and diisopropylfluorophosphate inhibit catalytic activity and binding of penicillin G indicating the involvement of a serine residue in both processes. For methanesulfonyl fluoride the second-order rate constant (0.7 M-1 min-1) is comparable to that of classical serine proteases. For diisopropylfluorophosphate, which binds to the enzyme stoichiometrically, the second-order rate constant (1.5 M-1 min-1) is at least two orders of magnitude smaller. The arginine-specific reagents methylglyoxal, 2,3-butanedione and phenylglyoxal inactive DD-carboxypeptidase in borate buffer with second-order rate constants of 70, 70 and 120 M-1 min-1, respectively. Inactivation correlates with stoichiometric binding to the enzyme. Peptidase and esterase activities are similarly affected, suggesting that substrate binding in both cases requires an arginine-carboxyl group interaction. Penicillin binding is also inhibited, but the degree of inhibition depends on the alpha-dicarbonyl side chain. Binding of alpha-dicarbonyls to DD-carboxypeptidase facilitates subsequent binding of diisopropylfluorophosphate suggesting that interaction of these compounds with the active site might induce a conformational change on the enzyme making the serine residue more accessible to the modifying reagent.

Potentiation of the depressor responses to atrial natriuretic peptides in conscious SHR by an inhibitor of neutral endopeptidase.

In previous studies, neutral endopeptidase (NEP) hydrolyzed the Cys105-Phe106 bond of atrial natriuretic peptides (ANP) in vitro. Three such ring-opened peptides derived from ANP 99-126, 103-126, and 103-123 were inactive in conscious rats. In conscious spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) in the present study, 100 mumol/kg, intravenously (i.v.) of the NEP inhibitor, SQ 29,072 (7-[[2-(mercaptomethyl)-1-oxo-3-phenyl-propyl]amino]heptanoic acid), significantly increased the area over the curve (AOC) of the depressor response to 3 nmol/kg of ANP 103-126 from 165 +/- 36 to 792 +/- 350, 1,515 +/- 374, and 828 +/- 164 mm Hg.min at 15, 30, and 60 min after inhibitor treatment. Thirty minutes after 3, 10, 30, and 100 mumol/kg of SQ 29,072, the AOC of 3 nmol/kg of ANP 99-126 increased from 175 +/- 59 mm Hg.min in vehicle-treated rats to 296 +/- 100, 318 +/- 34, 632 +/- 194 (p less than 0.05) and 656 +/- 151 (p less than 0.05) mm Hg.min. Furthermore, 100 mumol/kg of SQ 29,072 potentiated the AOC of human ANP 99-126 and 105-126 and rat ANP 99-126, 103-126, and 103-123, suggesting that the exocyclic N-terminal residues and the C-terminal tripeptide did not influence ANP potentiation by SQ 29,072. In contrast, inhibitors of aminopeptidase, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), and serine protease and an arginine vasopressin (AVP) antagonist did not substantially affect the AOC of 3 nmol/kg ANP 99-126. Finally, SQ 29,072 did not alter the activities of bradykinin, AVP, or angiotensin I or II. In conclusion, NEP may inactivate ANP in vivo by cleavage of susceptible bonds within the ANP ring.

Streptomyces R61 DD-carboxypeptidase: hydrolysis of X-D-alanyl-D-alanine peptides measured by a fluorometric assay.

A fluorometric procedure for measuring the activity of DD-carboxypeptidase is described. The method is based on the reaction of one of the products, D-alanine, with o-phthaldialdehyde to form a highly fluorescent adduct. The method has been applied in examining a series of X-D-alanyl-D-alanine peptides as substrates of the penicillin-sensitive DD-carboxypeptidase from Streptomyces R61. The effect of the third residue, X, on kinetic parameters and its implications on the steric analog model for penicillin action are also discussed.