Model Systems for Activation of Nucleic Acid Encoded Prodrugs

The development of more selective chemotherapeutic agents for benign treatments of malicious diseases is highly desirable. In recent years model systems for the release of small molecule drugs from nucleic acid conjugates by templated chemical or photochemical reactions have been designed. Common for these systems is that the stoichiometric or catalytic drug release is controlled by the highly selective hybridization between complementary strands of nucleic acids. Herein, the concepts of the new field of nucleic acid templated release reactions are outlined.

Synthesis of a novel dinucleating aminocarboxylate macrocycle and structures of its dinuclear complexes with di- and trivalent transition and lanthanide metal ions

The synthesis of the new ligand L1(H4L1= 3,8,16,21-tetrakis(carboxylmethyl)-3,8,16,21,27,28-hexaazatricyclo[21.3.1.1(10,14)]octacosa-1(27),10,12,14(28),23,25-hexaen-5,18-diine) is reported. The solid-state structures of the four homodinuclear chelate complexes, [Zn2(L1)(H2O)2] x 6H2O, [Fe2(L1)(mu-O)] x 4H2O, [La2(L1)(NO3)2(H2O)2] x 6H2O and Na[Eu2(L1)(mu-AcO)3] x 3H2O, were determined by single-crystal X-ray structural analysis.

DNA-templated metal catalysis

Hydrolysis of an ester substrate by a CuII complex catalyst, both attached to oligo-peptide nucleic acids (PNA), is accelerated up to 485-fold in the presence of a complementary DNA template. The approach combines the sequence selectivity of DNA-templated reactions with signal amplification by multiple turnover and the versatility of metal catalysis.

Cysteinyl peptide inhibitors of Bacillus cereus zinc beta-lactamase

Several cysteinyl peptides have been synthesised and shown to be reversible competitive inhibitors of the Bacillus cereus metallo-beta-lactamase. The pH dependence of pKi indicates that the thiol anion displaces hydroxide ion from the active site zinc(II). D,D-Peptides bind to the enzyme better than other diastereoisomers, which is compatible with the predicted stereochemistry of the active site.