Neuronal activation by GPI-linked neuroligin-1 displayed in synthetic lipid bilayer membranes

We have characterized, in vitro, interactions between hippocampal neuronal cells and silica microbeads coated with synthetic, fluid, lipid bilayer membranes containing the glycosylphosphatidyl inositol (GPI)-linked extracellular domain of the postsynaptic membrane protein neuroligin-1. These bilayer-neuroligin-1 beads activated neuronal cells to form presynaptic nerve terminals at the point of contact in a manner similar to that observed for live PC12 cells, ectopically expressing the full length neuroligin-1. The synthetic membranes exhibited biological activity at neuroligin-1 densities of approximately 1 to 6 proteins/microm(2). Polyolycarbonate beads with neuroligin-1 covalently attached to the surface failed to activate neurons despite the fact that neuroligin-1 binding activity is preserved. This implies that a lipid membrane environment is likely to be essential for neuroligin-1 activity. This technique allows the study of isolated proteins in an environment that has physical properties resembling those of a cell surface; proteins can diffuse freely within the membrane, retain their in vivo orientations, and are in a nondenatured state. In addition, the synthetic membrane environment affords control over both lipid and protein composition. This technology is easily implemented and can be applied to a wide variety of cellular studies.     

Antihydrophobic cosolvent effects for alkylation reactions in water solution, particularly oxygen versus carbon alkylations of phenoxide ions

Antihydrophobic cosolvents such as ethanol increase the solubility of hydrophobic molecules in water, and they also affect the rates of reactions involving hydrophobic surfaces. In simple reactions of hydrocarbons, such as the Diels-Alder dimerization of 1,3-cyclopentadiene, the rate and solubility data directly reflect the geometry of the transition state, in which some hydrophobic surface becomes hidden. In reactions involving polar groups, such as alkylations of phenoxide ions or S(N)1 ionizations of alkyl halides, cosolvents in water can have other effects as well. However, solvation of hydrophobic surfaces is still important. By the use of structure-reactivity relationships, and comparing the effects of ethanol and DMSO as solvents, it has been possible to sort out these effects. The conclusions are reinforced by an ab initio computer model for hydrophobic solvation. The result is a sensible transition state for phenoxide ion as a nucleophile, using its oxygen n electrons to avoid loss of conjugation. The geometry of alkylation of aniline is very different, involving packing (stacking) of the aniline ring onto the phenyl ring of a benzyl group in the benzylation reaction. The alkylation of phenoxide ions by benzylic chlorides can occur both at the phenoxide oxygen and on ortho and para positions of the ring. Carbon alkylation occurs in water, but not in nonpolar organic solvents, and it is observed only when the phenoxide has at least one methyl substituent ortho, meta, or para. The effects of phenol substituents and of antihydrophobic cosolvents on the rates of the competing alkylation processes indicate that in water the carbon alkylation involves a transition state with hydrophobic packing of the benzyl group onto the phenol ring. The results also support our conclusion that oxygen alkylation uses the n electrons of the phenoxide oxygen as the nucleophile and does not have hydrophobic overlap in the transition state. The mechanisms and explanations for competing oxygen and carbon alkylations differ from previous proposals by others.     

Antihydrophobic cosolvent effects in organic displacement reactions

[formula: see text] Rates of reactions in water can be modified by the presence of antihydrophobic cosolvents such as ethanol and DMSO, which lower the energies of nonpolar surfaces. The rate effects reflect changes both in the solvation of nonpolar surfaces and also in the solvation of polar groups. The effects have been sorted out for some displacement reactions, revealing the geometry of an interesting branching reaction whose two paths show different antihydrophobic effects.     

A polarographic study of the hydrolysis of 1,4-benzodiazepines and its analytical applications

The mechanism of hydrolysis of flurazepam (Dalmane) and six of its metabolites was investigated in mildly acidic solution (pH 0–2) by differential pulse polarography. Simultaneous determinations of the “parent” compound(s) and hydrolytic degradation product(s) are possible because of the different reduction potentials. The kinetic results can be explained if the hydrolytic reaction is considered reversible; this is important for evaluation of the hydrolysis and absorption of 5-(o-fluorophenyl)-1,4-benzodiazepines in the stomach. The rate constants and the pK_a values corresponding to protonation of the azomethine groups are shown to be correlated. Appropriate kinetic data for other 1,4-benzodiazepines make it possible to evaluate the effects of certain substituents on the rate of hydrolysis and on the peak potentials of the “parent” compounds and their hydrolytic degradation products. The results of the kinetic investigations can be used for the identification of an isolated 5-(o-fluorophenyl)-1,4-benzodiazepine or identification of any 1,4-benzodiazepine studied here which exhibits some degree of acid hydrolysis within 24 h.     

Kinetics of the solvolysis of thetrans-dichlorobis(1,2-diaminoethane) cobalt(III) in water + ethanonitrile mixtures

Summary The kinetics of the solvolysis of thetrans-[Coen₂Cl₂]⁺ cation (en = 1,2-diaminoethane) have been investigated over a range of temperatures in water with added ethanonitrile which has much less effect on the solvent structure than the acohols already used as co-solvents with water for this solvolysis. However, the non-linear relationship obtained for the variation of log (rate constant) with the reciprocal of the dielectric constant at constant temperature shows that the effect of changing solvent structure is still important, although, as expected from the absence of pronounced extrema in the variation with composition in water + ethanonitrile of physical properties which are influenced by such changes in solvent structure, the enthalpy and entropy of activation for the solvolysis vary smoothly with composition. The application of a free energy cycle shows that changes in solvent structure affect the pentacoordinated cobalt(III) ion in the transition state more than the hexacoordinated cobalt(III) ion in the initial state.     

Many-particle tracking with nanometer resolution in three dimensions by reflection interference contrast microscopy

We have developed and characterized a method, based on reflection interference contrast microscopy, to simultaneously determine the three-dimensional positions of multiple particles in a colloidal monolayer. To evaluate this method, the interaction of 6.8 microm (+/-5%) diameter lipid-derivatized silica microspheres with an underlying planar borosilicate substrate is studied. Measured colloidal height distributions are consistent with expectations for an electrostatically levitated colloidal monolayer. The precision of the method is analyzed using experimental techniques in addition to computational bootstrapping algorithms. In its present implementation, this technique achieves 16 nm lateral and 1 nm vertical precision.     

TEAD–YAP Interaction Inhibitors and MDM2 Binders from DNA-Encoded Indole-Focused Ugi Peptidomimetics

DNA-encoded combinatorial synthesis provides efficient and dense coverage of chemical space around privileged molecular structures. The indole side chain of tryptophan plays a prominent role in key, or “hot spot”, regions of protein–protein interactions. A DNA-encoded combinatorial peptoid library was designed based on the Ugi four-component reaction by employing tryptophan-mimetic indole side chains to probe the surface of target proteins. Several peptoids were synthesized on a chemically stable hexathymidine adapter oligonucleotide “hexT”, encoded by DNA sequences, and substituted by azide-alkyne cycloaddition to yield a library of 8112 molecules. Selection experiments for the tumor-relevant proteins MDM2 and TEAD4 yielded MDM2 binders and a novel class of TEAD-YAP interaction inhibitors that perturbed the expression of a gene under the control of these Hippo pathway effectors.