Synthesis, characterization, and remarkable biological properties of cyclodextrins bearing guanidinoalkylamino and aminoalkylamino groups on their primary side.

The introduction of aminoalkylamino and guanidinoalkylamino substituents on the primary side of beta- and gamma-cyclodextrin (CDs) resulted in a series of novel compounds that were extensively characterized by NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. Bromination of the primary side of beta- and gamma-CD, and reaction with neat alkylene diamines at a pressure of 7 atm afforded aminoalkylamino derivatives that were then guanylated at the primary amino group to give the corresponding guanidinoalkylamino-CDs. These compounds are water soluble and display pK(a) values that allow them to be mostly protonated at neutral pH; for example, pK(a(1)) approximately 6.4 and pK(a(2)) approximately 9.5 for the aminoethylamino-beta-CD and pK(a(1)) approximately 7.8 and pK(a(2)) approximately 11.0 for the guanidinoethylamino-beta-CD. The title CDs are rigid, cyclic alpha-D-glucopyranose oligomers (heptamers or octamers) with branches that resemble lysine and arginine side chains that enable multiple interactions with suitable substrates. Thus, they bear similarities to known cell-penetrating peptides. Indeed, the compounds were found to cross the membranes of HeLa cells and penetrate inside the cytoplasm quickly, the guadinylated ones within 15 min, as shown by fluorescence microscopy using fluorescein-labeled derivatives. The toxicity of the compounds, measured by performing MTT tests, ranged from 50 to 300 microM. Furthermore, some of the aminated CDs could facilitate the transfection of DNA expressing the green fluorescent protein (GFP) in HEK 293T cells, with effectiveness comparable to the commercial agent Lipofectamine 2000. Circular dichroism, atomic force microscopy and electrophoresis experiments confirmed the strong interaction of the compounds with DNA. Because of their carbohydrate, non-peptide nature the title compounds are not anticipated to be enzymatically labile or immunogenic, and thus they fulfill many of the criteria for non-hazardous transport vectors in biological and pharmaceutical applications.

Evaluation of a series of new 99mTc-labeled bombesin-like peptides for early cancer detection.

Bombesin (BN) is a peptide exhibiting a high affinity for the gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) receptor, which is overexpressed by a variety of tumors, including breast or prostate cancer. The aim of the present study was the investigation of the complexes formed between a series of BN-like peptides and the nuclides (185/187)Re and 99mTc. The (185/187)Re complexes were formed via the precursor Regluconate. The radiolabeling of the derivatives with 99mTc was performed using either 99mTc-gluconate or 99mTc-MDP as the intermediate complex. For the in vitro evaluation of the new peptides, the cancer cell line PC3 was used. The in vivo behavior of the 99mTc-labeled BN-like peptides was evaluated in normal mice. All the derivatives showed specific uptake in the pancreas, an organ rich in BN receptors and high affinity for the cancer cell line PC3. The above preliminary results indicated that the new BN derivatives are promising for human cancer studies.