Evidence for acyloxymethyl esters of pyrimidine 5'-deoxyribonucleotides as extracellular sources of active 5'-deoxyribonucleotides in cultured cells

A strategy for addicting transgene-free bacteria to synthetic modified metabolites

Biological containment is a safeguard technology to prevent uncontrolled proliferation of "useful but dangerous" microbes. Addiction to synthetic chemicals is ideal for biological containment, but this currently requires introduction of transgenes containing synthetic genetic elements for which environmental diffusion has to be prevented. Here, I designed a strategy for addicting transgene-free bacteria to synthetic modified metabolites, in which the target organism that can neither produce an essential metabolite nor use the extracellularly supplied metabolite, is rescued by a synthetic derivative that is taken up from a medium and converted into the metabolite in the cell. Because design of the synthetic modified metabolite is the key technology, our strategy differs distinctly from conventional biological containment, which mainly depends on genetic manipulation of the target microorganisms. Our strategy is particularly promising for containment of non-genetically modified organisms such as pathogens and live vaccines.

Metabolic Efficacy of Phosphate Prodrugs and the Remdesivir Paradigm

Drugs that contain phosphates (and phosphonates or phosphinates) have intrinsic absorption issues and are therefore often delivered in prodrug forms to promote their uptake. Effective prodrug forms distribute their payload to the site of the intended target and release it efficiently with minimal byproduct toxicity. The ability to balance unwanted payload release during transit with desired release at the site of action is critical to prodrug efficacy. Despite decades of research on prodrug forms, choosing the ideal prodrug form remains a challenge which is often solved empirically. The recent emergency use authorization of the antiviral remdesivir for COVID-19 exemplifies a new approach for delivery of phosphate prodrugs by parenteral dosing, which minimizes payload release during transit and maximizes tissue payload distribution. This review focuses on the role of metabolic activation in efficacy during oral and parenteral dosing of phosphate, phosphonate, and phosphinate prodrugs. Through examining prior structure–activity studies on prodrug forms and the choices that led to development of remdesivir and other clinical drugs and drug candidates, a better understanding of their ability to distribute to the planned site of action, such as the liver, plasma, PBMCs, or peripheral tissues, can be gained. The structure–activity relationships described here will facilitate the rational design of future prodrugs.

Phosphoramidates as Potent Prodrugs of anti-HIV Nucleotides: Studies in the Amino Region

Novel phosphoramidate derivatives of the anti-HIV nucleoside analogues AZT and d4T have been prepared by phosphorochloridate chemistry. These materials are designed to act as labile membrane-soluble prodrugs of the bio-active free nucleotides. All compounds were fully characterised by a range of methods and were subjected to evaluation in vitro of their anti-HIV efficacy. A notable feature of the current study was that any attempt to replace the amino acid moiety of the phosphoramidate with a simple amine lead to a marked, virtually total loss of activity. Such simple phenyl alkylamino phosphate derivatives of either d4T or AZT inhibit HIV replication at cytotoxic concentrations and have no detectable antiviral selectivity. This clearly highlights the vital role played by the amino acid in the antiviral efficacy of the blocked phosphoramidates.

Haloalkyl Phosphate Derivatives of AZT as Inhibitors of HIV: Studies in the Phosphate Region

Novel haloalkyl phosphate derivatives of the anti-HIV nucleoside analogue AZT were prepared by phosphorochloridate chemistry. These materials were designed to act as labile membrane-soluble prodrugs of the bio-active free nucleotides. In vitro evaluation revealed the compounds to have a pronounced and selective antiviral action, which varied greatly with the structure of the phosphate moiety. By comparison to simple dialkyl phosphates, which are inactive against HIV-1, the introduction of halogen atoms into the alkyl (phosphate) chains led to anti-HIV activity. Although halogen substitution in just one alkyl chain was sufficient for biological activity, substitution in the second alkyl chain further enhanced activity. Conversely, stabilization of the second chain, by conversion to a phosphonate, led to a reduction in activity. In one case, the diastereo-isomers resulting from mixed stereochemistry at the phosphate centre were separated, and found to differ in activity by one order of magnitude. Lastly, the bis(mono- and di-chloroethyl) phosphates were prepared and found to display moderate anti-HIV activity.

Alkyl Hydrogen Phosphonate Derivatives of the anti-HIV Agent AZT may be Less Toxic than the Parent Nucleoside Analogue

Novel alkyl hydrogen phosphonate derivatives of the anti-HIV nucleoside analogue AZT have been prepared by phosphorochloridite chemistry. These materials are designed to act as labile membrane-soluble prodrugs of the bioactive free nucleotides. In vitro evaluation has revealed the compounds to have a pronounced and selective antiviral action. Short-chain (C1-C7) alkyl derivatives are more potent than the parent hydrogen phosphonate, whilst one long-chain (C18) compound is less active. In an assay that demonstrates the toxicity of the parent drug AZT, the alkyl H-phosphonates appear to be less cytotoxic, whilst retaining full antiviral activity. Lastly, the compounds are all poorly active in a cell line (JM) that is poorly responsive to AZT, indicating that they act as depot forms of the nucleoside rather than of the free nucleotide.

Bis(pivaloyloxymethyl) thymidine 5'-phosphate is a cell membrane-permeable precursor of thymidine 5'-phosphate in thymidine kinase deficient CCRF CEM cells

Bis(pivaloyloxymethyl) thymidine 5-phosphate (POM(2)-dTMP) has been investigated as a membrane-permeable prodrugs of dTMP. The growth inhibitory activity of POM(2)-TMP has been compared with thymidine (TdR) in wild type CCRF CEM cells (CEM) and a strain that lacks TdR kinase (CEM tk-). After 72 h incubation at 37 degrees C, TdR showed significant antiproliferative activity (IC(50)=27 microM) against CEM cells but was weakly effective (IC(50)=730 microM) against the mutant cell line. By comparison, bis(pivaloyloxymethyl) thymidine 5'-monophosphate (POM(2)-dTMP) was equally inhibitory (IC(50)=5 microM) to both cell lines. The growth inhibitory effects were reversed by deoxycytidine. Cellular [methyl-(3)H]dTTP pools increased linearly over 2h during incubation of CEM or CEM tk- with 5 microM POM(2)-[methyl-(3)H]dTMP. The incorporation of [methyl-(3)H]TdR into HClO(4)-insoluble cell residue by CEM tk- was <0.1% that of CEM and did not increase over 1h. In contrast, CEM tk- incorporated radioactivity from POM(2)-dTMP into acid insoluble residue at a rate 59% that of CEM. These results demonstrate that POM(2)-dTMP can penetrate into cells and serve as a source of dTMP.

Synthesis and analysis of potential prodrugs of coenzyme A analogues for the inhibition of the histone acetyltransferase p300

Lys-CoA (1) is a selective inhibitor of p300 histone acetyltransferase (HAT) but shows poor pharmacokinetic properties because of its multiply charged phosphates. In an effort to overcome this limitation, truncated derivatives of 1 were designed, synthesized and tested as p300HAT inhibitors as well as substrates for the CoA biosynthetic bifunctional enzyme phosphopantetheine adenylyltransferase-dephospho-CoA kinase (PPAT/DPCK). Lys-pantetheine (3) and Lys-phosphopantetheine (2) showed no detectable p300HAT inhibition whereas 3'-dephospho-Lys-CoA (5) was a modest p300 inhibitor with IC(50) of 1.6 microM (compared to IC(50) of approximately 50 nM for 1 blocking p300). Compound 2 was shown to be an efficient substrate for PPAT whereas 5 was a very poor DPCK substrate. Further analysis with 3'-dephospho-Me-SCoA (7) indicated that DPCK shows relatively narrow capacity to accept substrates with sulfur substitution. While these results suggest that truncated derivatives of 1 will be of limited value as lead agents for p300 blockade in vivo, they augur well for prodrug versions of CoA analogues that do not require 3'-phosphate substitution for efficient binding to their targets, such as the GCN-5 related N-acetyltransferases.

Membrane-permeant derivatives of mannose-1-phosphate

For treatment of congenital disorder of glycosylation type Ia (CDG-Ia) membrane-permeant derivatives of mannose-1-phosphate are required. Employing biologically cleavable phosphate protecting groups advantageous precursor derivatives could be synthesized following a facile approach. Their enzymatic cleavages using esterase from porcine liver (E.C. 3.1.1.1) were investigated.

Membrane-permeant esters of phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate

Phosphoinositide 3-OH kinases and their products, D-3 phosphorylated phosphoinositides, are increasingly recognized as crucial elements in many signaling cascades. A reliable means to introduce these lipids into intact cells would be of great value for showing the physiological roles of this pathway and for testing the specificity of pharmacological inhibitors of the kinases. We have stereospecifically synthesized di-C8-PIP3/AM and di-C12-PIP3/AM, the heptakis(acetoxymethyl) esters of dioctanoyl- and dilauroylphosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate, in 14 steps from myo-inositol. The ability of these uncharged lipophilic derivatives to deliver phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate across cell membranes was demonstrated on 3T3-L1 adipocytes and T84 colon carcinoma monolayers. Insulin stimulation of hexose uptake into adipocytes was inhibited by the kinase inhibitor wortmannin and was largely restored by di-C8-PIP3/AM, which had no effect in the absence of insulin. Thus phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate or a metabolite was necessary but not sufficient for stimulation of hexose transport. In T84 epithelial monolayers, di-C12-PIP3/AM mimicked epidermal growth factor in inhibiting chloride secretion and potassium efflux, suggesting that phosphatidylinositol 3,4, 5-trisphosphate was sufficient to modulate these fluxes and mediate epidermal growth factor's action.

Synthesis and anti-HIV activity of some novel diaryl phosphate derivatives of AZT

Novel diaryl phosphate triester derivatives of the anti-HIV nucleoside analogue AZT have been prepared by phosphorochloridate chemistry. These materials were designed to act as membrane-soluble pro-drugs of the bio-active free nucleotides. In particular, novel parasubstituted diaryl phosphate derivatives were prepared. In vitro evaluation revealed the compounds to have a pronounced and selective antiviral effect, the magnitude of which varied considerably with the nature of the aryl substituent. In particular, strongly electron-withdrawing aryl substituents correlate with high anti-HIV potency in C8166 cells. Along with AZT, the compounds are poorly effective in JM cells, which appear to lack thymidine kinase, indicating the phosphates to act as pro-drugs of the nucleoside rather than of the free phosphate.

Metabolism and in vitro antiretroviral activities of bis(pivaloyloxymethyl) prodrugs of acyclic nucleoside phosphonates

Bis(pivaloyloxymethyl) [bis(pom)] derivatives of various acyclic nucleoside phosphonates--9-(2-phosphonylmethoxyethyl)adenine (PMEA), 9-(2-phosphonylmethoxypropyl)adenine (PMPA), and 9-(2-phosphonylmethoxypropyl)diaminopurine (PMPDAP)--were found to exhibit 9- to 23-fold greater antiviral activity than their corresponding unmodified compounds. The cytotoxicity of the bis(pom) analogs was also increased by various degrees, thus altering the therapeutic indexes of these compounds. Metabolic studies using [3H]bis(pom)PMEA and [3H]PMEA as model compounds suggested a > 100-fold increase in the cellular uptake of the bis(pom) derivative and formation of active diphosphorylated metabolite. However, the bis(pom) derivatives were chemically unstable and highly susceptible to serum-mediated hydrolysis, factors which limit their potential utility for intracellular drug delivery.