Synthesis and evaluation of [18F]Fluorobutyl ethacrynic amide: a potential PET tracer for studying glutathione transferase.

[(18)F]Flurobutyl ethacrynic amide ([(18)F]FBuEA) was prepared from the precursor tosylate N-Boc-N-[4-(toluenesulfonyloxy)butyl]ethacrynic amide with a radiochemical yield of 3%, a specific activity of 48 GBq/µmol and radiochemical purity of 98%. Chemical conjugation of [(18)F]FBuEA with glutathione (GSH) via a self-coupling reaction and enzymatic conjugation under catalysis of glutathiontransferase alpha (GST-α) and π provided about 41% yields of radiochemical conjugated product [(18)F]FBuEA-GSH, 85% and 5-16%, respectively. The catalytic selectivity of this tracer toward GST-alpha was addressed. Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of [(18)F]FBuEA in normal rats showed that a homogeneous pattern of radioactivity was distributed in the liver, suggesting a catalytic role of GST. By contrast, PET images of [(18)F]FBuEA in rats with thioacetamide-induced cholangiocarcinoma displayed a heterogeneous pattern of radioactive accumulation with cold spots in tumor lesions. PET imaging with [(18)F]FBuEA could be used for early diagnosis of hepatic tumor with a low GST activity as well as liver function.

Synthesis of amino core compounds of galactosyl phytosyl ceramide analogs for developing iNKT-cell inducers.

1-Aminophytosphingosine and 6-aminogalactosyl phytosphingosine were prepared in 61% and 40% yield libraries with 44 carboxylic acids showed that a 4-butylbenzoic acid-derived product exe, respectively. Glycosylation using benzoyl-protected lipid resulted in better a-selectivity for ceramide analogs, but the yield was less than that obtained with benzyl moieties. Screening the amide rted less cytotoxicity. These analogs were purified for validation of immunological potencies and the a-GalCer analog but not the sphingosine analog stimulated human iNKT cell population.

Study of [18F]FLT and [123I]IaraU for cellular imaging in HSV1 tk-transfected murine fibrosarcoma cells: evaluation of the tracer uptake using 5-fluoro, 5-iodo and 5-iodovinyl arabinosyl uridines as competitive probes.

As one of the most intensively studied probes for imaging of the cellular proliferation, [(18)F]FLT was investigated whether the targeting specificity of thymidine kinase 1 (TK1) dependency could be enhanced through a synergistic effect mediated by herpes simplex type 1 virus (HSV1) tk gene in terms of the TK1 or TK2 expression. 5-[(123)I]Iodo arabinosyl uridine ([(123)I]IaraU) was prepared in a radiochemical yield of 8% and specific activity of 21 GBq/µmol, respectively. Inhibition of the cellular uptake of these two tracers was compared by using the arabinosyl uridine analogs such as 5-iodo, 5-fluoro and 5-(E)-iodovinyl arabinosyl uridine along with 2'-fluoro-5-iodo arabinosyl uridine (FIAU). Due to potential instability of the iodo group, accumulation index of 1.6 for [(123)I]IaraU by HSV1-TK vs. control cells could virtually be achieved at 1.5 h, but dropped to 0.2 compared to 2.0 for [(18)F]FLT at 5 h. The results from competitive inhibition by these nucleosides against the accumulation of [(18)F]FLT implied that FLT exerted a mixed TK1- and TK2-dependent inhibition with HSV1-tk gene transfection because of the shifting of thymidine kinase status. Taken together, the combination of [(18)F]FLT and HSV1-TK provides a synergistic imaging potency.

Solution-phase parallel synthesis and screening of anti-tumor activities from fenbufen and ethacrynic acid libraries.

The derivatives with fenbufen and ethacrynic acid core compounds was synthesized through a facial preparation of 1-amino-4-azidobutane. The subsequent coupling with 102 members of carboxylic acids afforded amide products. The in situ screening using colorimetric assay with 3-(4.5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide showed that fenbufen but not ethacrynic acid butyl amide members displayed the cytotoxicities to tumor cells substantially, including two human cell lines (MCF7 and A549) and two murine cell lines (C26 and TRAMP-C1). Three fenbufen analogs were found to have a good anti-tumor activity comparable to cisplatin.

Combining a solution-phase derived library with in-situ cellular bioassay: prompt screening of amide-forming minilibraries using MTT assay.

We constructed a minilibrary using a solution-phase synthesis through coupling of three core amino compounds (5'-amino-5'-deoxy uridine, 5'-amino-2',5'-di-deoxy arabinosyl uridine, and butan-1-amine) with 30 carboxylic acids via amide bond formation. The simplified structural core compound butan-1-amine was selectively coupled with 9 carboxylic acids as control. 3-(4,5-Dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide assay of the crude mixtures showed that analogues derived from fenbufen, butylfenbufen C15; ethacrynic acid, butyl ethacrynic amide C18; and sphingosines, Sph-1, Sph-2 and U27 had an increased cytotoxicity against MCF-7 cells as well as A549 cells. Structural elucidation with molecular docking suggested that cytotoxicity of these compounds is mainly due to the inhibition of enzymes regulating cellular apoptosis.

Comparison of bioactivities of 5-Fluoro, 5-Iodo, 5-Iodovinyl, and 5-fluorovinyl arabinosyl uridines against SR-39 TK-transfected murine prostate cancer cells.

A cell survival assay of the four arabinosyl uridine analogs with functionalities of 5-fluoro, 5-fluorovinyl, 5-iodo, and 5-iodovinyl as potential positron-emitter tagged probe for monitoring cancer gene therapy were performed. Cytotoxicities of 5-fluoro-, 5-iodo-, 5-fluorovinyl, and 5-iodovinyl arabinosyl uridines against SR-39 thymidine kinase transfected murine prostate cancer cells have been evaluated using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. None of them showed significant bioactivity. A syn conformation derived from intra-hydrogen bonding was suggested for the unfavorable interaction and diminished bioactivity.

Synthesis of 5-radioiodoarabinosyl uridine analog for probing HSV-1 thymidine kinase gene: an unexpected chelating effect.

Tumor cells transduced with herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase gene has been intensively applied to the field of positron emission tomography via imaging of its substrate. As a pilot synthesis approach, a facial preparation of 5-[125I]iodoarabinosyl uridine starting from commercial available uridine is reported herein. Interestingly, the tin group in 5-trimethylstannyl arabinosyluridine was easily removed during purification. The destannylation through the formation of a six-ligand coordination involving 2'-hydroxyl and tin was thereby proposed.