[Ligands of glutamate and dopamine receptors evenly labeled with hydrogen isotopes].

A reaction of high-temperature solid-phase catalytic isotope exchange (HSCIE) was studied for the preparation of tritium- and deuterium-labeled ligands of glutamate and dopamine receptors. Tritium-labeled (5S,10R)-(+)-5-methyl-10,11-dihydro-5H-dibenzo[a,d]cyclopenten-5,10-imine ([G-(3)H]MK-801) and R(+)-7-hydroxy-N,N-di-n-propyl-2-aminotetraline ([G-(3)H]-7-OH-DPAT) were obtained with a specific activity of 210 and 120 Ci/mol, respectively. The isotopomeric distribution of deuterium-labeled ligands was studied using time-of-flight mass-spectrometer MX 5310 (ESI-o-TOF) with electrospray and orthogonal ion injection. Mean deuterium incorporation per ligand molecule was 11.09 and 3.21 atoms for [G-(2)H]MK-801 and [G-(2)H]-7-OH-DPAT, respectively. The isotope label was shown to be distributed all over the ligand molecule. The radioreceptor binding of tritium-labeled ligands [G-(3)H]MK-801 and [G-(3)H]-7-OH-DPAT was analyzed using the brain structure of Vistar rats. It was demonstrated that [G-(3)H]MK-801 specifically binds to hippocampus membranes with K(d) 8.3 +/- 1.4 nM, B(max) being 3345 +/- 300 fmol/mg protein. The [G-(3)H]-7-OH-DPAT ligand specifically binds to rat striatum membranes with K(d) 10.01 +/- 0.91 nM and B(max) 125 +/- 4.5 fmol/mg protein. It was concluded that the HSCIE reaction can be used for the preparation of highly tritium-labeled (+)-MK-801 and 7-OH-DPAT with retention of their physiological activities.

[Solid phase reaction of hemoglobin with spillover hydrogen].

The reaction of high-temperature solid-state catalytic isotope exchange (HSCIE) between bovine hemoglobin and spillover hydrogen (SH) was studied. It was shown that, in the field of subunit contact, there is a significant decrease in ability for hydrogen exchange by SH. A comparison of the distribution of the isotope label in the hemoglobin alpha-subunit was carried out for the HSCIE reaction with the hemoglobin complex and with the free alpha-subunit. To this end, enzymatic hydrolysis of protein under the action of trypsin was carried out. The separation of tritium-labeled tryptic peptides was achieved by HPLC. Changes in availability of polypeptide chain fragments caused by complex formation were calculated using a molecular model. The formation of the protein complex was shown to lead to a decrease in the ability of fragments of alpha-subunits MFLSFPTTK (A(32-40)) and VDPVNFK (A(93-99)) for hydrogen replacement by tritium by almost an order of magnitude; hence, their availability to water (1.4 A) twice decreased on the average. The decrease in ability to an exchange of hydrogen by spillover tritium on the formation of hemoglobin complex was shown to be connected with a reduction in availability of polypeptide chain fragments participating in spatial interactions of subunits with each other. Thus, the HSCIE reaction can be used not only for the preparative obtaining of tritium-labeled compounds, but also for determining the contact area in the formation of protein complexes.

[A comparative analysis of distribution of glyprolines administered by various routes].

The distribution of the glyprolines Pro-Gly-Pro and Thr-Lys-Pro-Arg-Pro-Gly-Pro (Selanc) was analyzed and compared in tissues of rat organs after different ways of their administration using the peptides uniformly labeled with tritium. Comparative data on changes in concentrations of the peptides in the rat organs after their intraperitoneal, intranasal, intragastric, and intravenous administration are given. The intranasal administration of both peptides was shown to be optimal for the delivery of glyproline molecules in the CNS. A high affinity of the studied glyprolines for gastric tissues was found for all the ways of their administration. We suggest that a high efficiency of action of glyprolines on homeostasis of the gastric mucous tunic was partially provided by accumulation of these peptides (to high concentrations) in gastric tissues.

[Evenly tritium-labeled peptides and their in vivo and in vitro biodegradation].

Biologically active peptides evenly labeled with tritium were used for studying the in vitro and in vivo biodegradation of the peptides. Tritium-labeled peptides with a specific radioactivity of 50-150 Ci/mmol were obtained by high temperature solid phase catalytic isotope exchange (HSCIE) with spillover tritium. The distribution of the isotope label among all amino acid residues of these peptides allows the simultaneous determination of practically all possible products of their enzymatic hydrolysis. The developed analytical method includes extraction of tritium-labeled peptides from organism tissues and chromatographic isolation of individual labeled peptides from the mixture of degradation products. The concentrations of a peptide under study and the products of its biodegradation were calculated from the results of liquid scintillation counting. This approach was used for studying the pathways of biodegradation of the heptapeptide TKPRPGP (Selank) and the tripeptide PGP in blood plasma. The pharmacokinetics of Selank, an anxiolytic peptide, was also studied in brain tissues using the intranasal in vivo administration of this peptide. The concentrations of labeled peptides were determined, and the pentapeptide TKPRP, tripeptide TKP, and dipeptides RP and GP were shown to be the major products of Selank biodegradation. The study of the biodegradation of the heptapeptide MEHFPGP (Semax) in the presence of nerve cells showed that the major products of its biodegradation are the pentapeptide HFPGP and tripeptide PGP. The enkephalinase activity of blood plasma was studied with the use of evenly tritium-labeled [Leu]enkephalin. A high inhibitory effect of Semax on blood plasma enkephalinases was shown to arise from its action on aminopeptidases. The method, based on the use of evenly tritium-labeled peptides, allows the determination of peptide concentrations and the activity of enzymes involved in their degradation on a tg scale of biological samples both in vitro and in vivo.

[Short peptide fragments with antiulcer activity from a collagen hydrolysate].

A peptide acidic hydrolysate of collagen (PHC) was obtained under conditions (4 N HCl) ensuring the predominant formation of short peptides, glyprolines. They were separated and their antiulcer activity was studied. Thirty individual peptides with molecular masses of 174-420 amu were isolated from the PHC by HPLC. The PHC was shown to predominantly contain 2- to 4-aa peptides, including PG, GP, and PGP. Experiments on rats demonstrated that, on intragastric administration at a dose of 1 mg/kg, PHC enhances the stability of the gastric mucosa to the action of ulcerogenic factors, such as ethanol and stress, and exhibits a protecting antiulcer effect. Even a lesser dose (0.1 mg/kg), which reduced ulcer area twofold, was effective in the stress model of ulcer formation. The intraperitoneal and intragastric administration of PHC at a dose of 1 mg/kg was found to exhibit a therapeutic effect in the acetate model of ulcer formation.

[Solid phase isotope exchange with spillover hydrogen in amino acids, peptides, and proteins].

We summarize here information on the theoretical and experimental study of high-temperature (150-200 degrees C) solid phase catalytic isotope exchange (HTSPCIE) carried out with amino acids, peptides, and proteins under the action of spillover hydrogen. Main specific features of the HTSPCIE reaction, its mechanism, and its use for studying spatial interactions in polypeptides are discussed. A virtually complete absence of racemization makes this reaction a valuable preparative method. The main regularities of the HTSPCIE reaction with the participation of spillover tritium have been revealed in the case of peptides and proteins, and the dependence of reactivity of peptide fragments on the spatial organization of their molecules has been studied. An important peculiarity of this reaction is that HTSPCIE proceeds at 150-200 degrees C with a high degree of chirality retention in amino acids and peptides. This is provided by its reaction mechanism, which consists in a synchronous one-center substitution at the saturated carbon atom characterized by the formation of pentacoordinated carbon and a three-center bond between the carbon and the incoming and outgoing hydrogen atoms.

[Study of solid-phase catalytic isotopic exchange of hydrogen in alpha-conotoxin G1 under the effect of spillover-tritium]. / Issledovanie tverdofaznogo kataliticheskogo izotopnogo obmena vodoroda v konotoksine G1 pod deistviem spillover-tritiia.

Tritium-labeled alpha-conotoxin G1 with a molar radioactivity of 35 Ci/mmol and full biological activity (according to the binding to nicotinic acetylcholine receptor) was obtained by the high-temperature solid-state catalytic isotope exchange (HSCIE). The tritium distribution in the molecule of alpha-conotoxin G1 was revealed by 3H NMR spectroscopy. Tritium was found in all amino acid residues except for the Asn4-Pro5-Ala6 fragment. The data on the comparative reactivity of C-H bonds, the ab initio quantum-chemical calculation of the hydrogen exchange reaction, and the information on the spatial structures of alpha-conotoxin G1 in solution and in crystal state allowed us to establish that the reactivity of H atoms may be increased by their interaction with the electron donor O and N atoms at the transition state of the HSCIE reaction. A decrease in the rate of the HSCIE reaction could be caused by both a poor spatial accessibility of C-H bonds and a limited mobility of the peptide fragment containing these bonds.

[Solid phase catalytic hydrogen isotope exchange in dalargin]. / Issledovanie tverdofaznogo kataliticheskogo izotopnogo obmena vodoroda v dalargine.

A [3H]Dalargin preparation with a molar radioactivity of 52 Ci/mmol was obtained by the high temperature solid-state catalytic isotope exchange (HSCIE) of tritium for hydrogen at 150 degrees C. This tritium-labeled peptide was shown to completely retain its biological activity in the test of binding to opioid receptors from rat brain. The dissociation constant of the Dalargin-opioid receptor complex was found to be 4.3 nM. The dependencies of the chemical yield and the molar radioactivity on the reaction time and temperature of HSCIE were determined. The activation energy of the HSCIE reaction for the peptide was calculated to be 32 kcal/mol. The amino acid analysis showed that tritium is distributed between all the amino acid residues of [3H]Dalargin at the HSCIE reaction, with the temperature growth significantly increasing the total tritium incorporation and, especially, enhancing the radioactivity incorporation into aromatic residues.