Synthesis and cytotoxicities of 7-aza rebeccamycin analogues bearing various substituents on the sugar moiety, on the imide nitrogen and on the carbazole framework

Heterocyclic Diamidine DNA Ligands as HOXA9 Transcription Factor Inhibitors: Design, Molecular Evaluation, and Cellular Consequences in a HOXA9-Dependant Leukemia Cell Model

Most transcription factors were for a long time considered as undruggable targets because of the absence of binding pockets for direct targeting. HOXA9, implicated in acute myeloid leukemia, is one of them. To date, only indirect targeting of HOXA9 expression or multitarget HOX/PBX protein/protein interaction inhibitors has been developed. As an attractive alternative by inhibiting the DNA binding, we selected a series of heterocyclic diamidines as efficient competitors for the HOXA9/DNA interaction through binding as minor groove DNA ligands on the HOXA9 cognate sequence. Selected DB818 and DB1055 compounds altered HOXA9-mediated transcription in luciferase assays, cell survival, and cell cycle, but increased cell death and granulocyte/monocyte differentiation, two main HOXA9 functions also highlighted using transcriptomic analysis of DB818-treated murine Hoxa9-transformed hematopoietic cells. Altogether, these data demonstrate for the first time the propensity of sequence-selective DNA ligands to inhibit HOXA9/DNA binding both in vitro and in a murine Hoxa9-dependent leukemic cell model.

Convergent Synthesis of N,S-bis Glycosylquinolin-2-ones via a Pd-G3-XantPhos Precatalyst Catalysis

Buchwald-Hartwig-Migita cross-coupling of 1-thiosugars with α- or β-3-iodo-N-glycosylquinolin-2-ones has been accomplished under mild and operationally simple reaction conditions through the use of a Pd-G3 XantPhos palladacycle precatalyst. This new methodology has been successfully applied to a variety of α- or β-mono-, di-, and poly-thiosugar derivatives to efficiently synthesize a series of α- or β-N,S-bis-glycosyl quinolin-2-ones, which are difficult to synthesize by classical methods.

Cytotoxic Indolocarbazoles from Actinomadura melliaura ATCC 39691

Actinomadura melliaura ATCC 39691, a strain isolated from a soil sample collected in Bristol Cove, California, is a known producer of the disaccharide-substituted AT2433 indolocarbazoles (6-9). Reinvestigation of this strain using new media conditions led to >40-fold improvement in the production of previously reported AT2433 metabolites and the isolation and structure elucidation of the four new analogues, AT2433-A3, A4, A5, and B3 (1-4). The availability of this broader set of compounds enabled a subsequent small antibacterial/fungal/cancer SAR study that revealed disaccharyl substitution, N-6 methylation, and C-11 chlorination as key modulators of bioactivity. The slightly improved anticancer potency of the newly reported N-6-desmethyl 1 (compared to 6) contrasts extensive SAR of monoglycosylated rebeccamycin-type topoisomerase I inhibitors where N-6 alkylation has contributed to improved potency and ADME. Complete 2D NMR assignments for the known metabolite BMY-41219 (5) and (13)C NMR spectroscopic data for the known analogue AT2433-B1 (7) are also provided for the first time.

Vibrational spectroscopy and density functional theory study of 3-[4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl]-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide

In this work, the structural parameters of the title molecule (MTT) have been obtained at the B3LYP/6-311++G(**) level of theory. The two phenyl rings and the two heterocyclic rings are found in four different planes. The tetrazolium ring was connected with other three rings and their distances are also different in decrease order of 1.461 Å (from tetrazolium ring to carbon connected phenyl)>1.445 Å (from tetrazolium ring to nitrogen connected phenyl)>1.425 Å (from tetrazolium ring to thiazolyl ring). Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectra of the compound were obtained experimentally. All FTIR and Raman bands of the compound obtained experimentally were assigned based on the modeling results obtained at the B3LYP/6-311++G(**) level. The calculated vibrational frequencies were in good agreement with the experimental values. In addition, the UV-Vis spectra were obtained experimentally and theoretically. Considering the effect of the PCM modelling error, the calculated absorbance peaks obtained at the B3LYP/6-311++G(**) level were also in good agreement with the experimental values. The HOMO-LUMO gap was predicted to be 1.83 eV at the B3LYP/6-311++G(**) level.

Marine pyrrolocarbazoles and analogues: synthesis and kinase inhibition

Granulatimide and isogranulatimide are alkaloids obtained from marine sources which have been shown to inhibit cell-cycle G2-checkpoint, targeting more particularly checkpoint 1 kinase (Chk1). At a structural level, they possess a characteristic pyrrolocarbazole framework also shared by the well-known rebeccamycin and staurosporine microbial metabolites which have been described to inhibit topoisomerase I and diverse kinases, respectively. This review reports precisely on the synthesis and kinase inhibitory activities of pyrrolocarbazole-based analogues of granulatimide.

Rebeccamycin derivatives as dual DNA-damaging agents and potent checkpoint kinase 1 inhibitors

Rebeccamycin is an indolocarbazole class inhibitor of topoisomerase I. In the course of structure-activity relationship studies on rebeccamycin derivatives, we have synthesized analogs with the sugar moiety attached to either one or both indole nitrogens. Some analogs, especially those with substitutions at the 6' position of the carbohydrate moiety, exhibit potent inhibitory activity toward checkpoint kinase 1 (Chk1), a kinase that has a major role in the G(2)/M checkpoint in response to DNA damage. Some of these compounds retained a genotoxic activity either through intercalation into the DNA and/or by topoisomerase I-mediated DNA cleavage. We explored the structure-activity relationship between these compounds and their multiple targets. These rebeccamycin derivatives represent a novel class of potential antitumor agents that have a dual effect and might selectively induce the death of cancer cells.

Deciphering indolocarbazole and enediyne aminodideoxypentose biosynthesis through comparative genomics: insights from the AT2433 biosynthetic locus

AT2433, an indolocarbazole antitumor antibiotic, is structurally distinguished by its aminodideoxypentose-containing disaccharide and asymmetrically halogenated N-methylated aglycon. Cloning and sequence analysis of AT2433 gene cluster and comparison of this locus with that encoding for rebeccamycin and the gene cluster encoding calicheamicin present an opportunity to study the aminodideoxypentose biosynthesis via comparative genomics. The locus was confirmed via in vitro biochemical characterization of two methyltransferases--one common to AT2433 and rebeccamycin, the other unique to AT2433--as well as via heterologous expression and in vivo bioconversion experiments using the AT2433 N-glycosyltransferase. Preliminary studies of substrate tolerance for these three enzymes reveal the potential to expand upon the enzymatic diversification of indolocarbazoles. Moreover, this work sets the stage for future studies regarding the origins of the indolocarbazole maleimide nitrogen and indolocarbazole asymmetry.

Synthesis and biological activities of 7-aza rebeccamycin analogues bearing the sugar moiety on the nitrogen of the pyridine ring

The synthesis of a new family of 7-aza-rebeccamycin analogues in which the sugar moiety is attached to the nitrogen of the pyridine ring is described. The capacity of the newly synthesized compounds to bind to DNA and to inhibit topoisomerase I has been evaluated. Their cytotoxicities toward four tumor cell lines, one murine leukemia L1210 and three human tumor cell lines, one prostate carcinoma DU145, one colon carcinoma HT29, and one non-small cell lung carcinoma A549, have been determined. Their abilities to inhibit the checkpoint kinase Chk1 have been evaluated.