Total synthesis of the α-subunit of human glycoprotein hormones: toward fully synthetic homogeneous human follicle-stimulating hormone

Described herein is the first total chemical synthesis of the unique α-subunit of the human glycoprotein hormone (α-hGPH). Unlike the biologically derived glycoprotein hormones, which are isolated as highly complex mixtures of glycoforms, α-hGPH obtained by chemical synthesis contains discrete homogeneous glycoforms. Two such systems have been prepared. One contains the disaccharide chitobiose at the natural N-glycosylation sites. The other contains dodecamer oligosaccharides at these same sites. The dodecamer sugar is a consensus sequence incorporating the key features associated with human glycoproteins.     

Chemical probes that selectively recognize the earliest Aβ oligomers in complex mixtures

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by the self-assembly of amyloid beta (Aβ) peptides. Recent models implicate some of the earliest Aβ oligomers, such as trimers and tetramers, in disease. However, the roles of these structures remain uncertain, in part, because selective probes of their formation are not available. Toward that goal, we generated bivalent versions of the known Aβ ligand, the pentapeptide KLVFF. We found that compounds containing sufficiently long linkers (～19 to 24 ?) recognized primarily Aβ trimers and tetramers, with little binding to either monomer or higher order structures. These compounds might be useful probes for early Aβ oligomers.     

Design,synthesis and antitumor activity of 3-substituted quinolone derivatives （Ⅰ）

A series of quinolone derivatives containing benzimidazole, benzoxazole or benzothiazole ring were synthesized. The cytotoxicity of 12 new compounds was evaluated in KB, Be17402, A2780 and HT-29 cell lines. Most of synthesized compounds showed moderate inhibitory activity against cancer cells. The inhibitory activities of 6k, against KB and A2780 tumor ceils are comparable to that of topotecan, one of topoisomerase I inhibitors.     

Design, synthesis and antitumor activity of 3-substituted quinolone derivatives (Ⅰ)

A series of quinolone derivatives containing benzimidazole, benzoxazole or benzothiazole ring were synthesized. The cytotoxicity of 12 new compounds was evaluated in KB, Be17402, A2780 and HT-29 cell lines. Most of synthesized compounds showed moderate inhibitory activity against cancer cells. The inhibitory activities of 6k, against KB and A2780 tumor cells are comparable to that of topotecan, one of topoisomerase I inhibitors.     

Chemical 5′-phosphorylation of oligonucleotidesvaluable in automated DNA synthesis

A new method has been developed for the chemical 5′-phosphorylation ofoligonucleotides starting from easily available phosphorous-III compounds using phosphate protecting groups which can be cleaved off via β-elimination. The hydrophobic 2-(p-nitrophenyl)-ethyl group, at the phosphodiester level can serve as a purification handle in reversed phase HPLC. Moreover, the procedure has been adapted to automated DNA synthesis.     

Chemical synthesis of human adiponectin(19–107) bearing post-translational glycosylation

Human adiponectin(19–107), which consists of the variable region and the collagenous domain bearing post-translational modifications including glycosylation, was chemically synthesized for the first time. A glycoside of 5-hydroxylysine (Hyl) was incorporated using an α-d-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-β-d-galactopyranosyl/Hyl-Gly building block in a benzyl-protected form by solid-phase peptide synthesis (SPPS). The molecule was assembled from four segments prepared by SPPS via native chemical ligation (NCL) and thioester methods.     

Synthesis and antitumor activity of derivatives of 23-hydroxybetulinic acid

A series of natural product 23-hydroxybetulinic acid derivatives were prepared.In the preparation of mono-O-benzoyl ester derivative,it was observed that benzoyl group migrated from 3-O-to 23-O-position during the detritylation.     

Targeted synthesis of macrodiolides containing bis-methylene-separated Z-double bonds and their antitumor activity in vitro

An original strategy has been developed for the synthesis of valuable unsaturated macrocyclic lactones, macrodiolides, containing a 1Z,5Z-diene moiety in 57–79% yields and >98% stereoselectivity by hafnium triflate Hf(OTf)₄-catalyzed intermolecular esterification of aliphatic α,ω-dicarboxylic acids with α,ω-alka-nZ,(n+4)Z-dienediols (1,12-dodeca-4Z,8Z-dienediol, 1,14-tetradeca-5Z,9Z-dienediol, 1,18-octadeca-7Z,11Z-dienediol). The diols were obtained by homo-cyclomagnesiation of tetrahydropyran ethers of oxygenated 1,2-dienes with EtMgBr in the presence of Mg metal and Cp₂TiCl₂ catalyst (10?mol. %). The resulting macrodiolides exhibit high cytotoxic activity in vitro against Jurkat, K562, U937, Hek293 and HeLa tumor cell lines.     

Multifunctional hybrid nanoconjugates for efficient in vivo delivery of immunomodulating oligonucleotides and enhanced antitumor immunity

A winning combination: Multifunctional hybrid nanoconjugates (HNCs) based on polymer nanoparticles containing quantum dots (QDs) conjugated with CpG oligonucleotides (as a ligand for TLR9) and STAT3 siRNAs (to suppress the immune response) have been synthesized. These HNCs were shown to synergistically enhance the antitumor immune response in dendritic cells and in tumor-bearing mice.     

Synthesis and antitumor activity of heterocyclic acid ester derivatives of 20S-camptothecins

A series of heterocyclic acid esters of camptothecins as new compounds had been synthesized by acylation method,their in vitro and in vivo antitumor activities were evaluated.The cytotoxic results showed that 6 possessed the best efficacy on six human cancer cell lines in the six classes of CPTs' derivatives.In vivo testing results indicated that 9 had better antitumor activity against mouse liver carcinoma H_(22) than topotecan.     

Chemical synthesis of a structural gene coding for trichosanthin

A structural gene (750 bp), which codes for a type I ribosome inactivating protein, trichosanthin, has been designed according to the codon usage of highly expressed gene in E. coli and chemically synthesized. In the synthesized gene, twenty-seven unique restriction sites were evenly dispersed with an average distance between two adjacent sites less than 50 bp to facilitate a systematic investigation on structure-functional relationship of this protein by site-directed muta-genesis. To synthesize it, the whole gene was divided into three large fragments (EP, PN and NH) which were assembled from several chemical synthetic oligonucleotides by enzymatic method. The assembly of both the fragment EP from six oligonucleotides (A-F) and the fragment PN from four oligomers (G-J) was catalyzed by T4 DNA ligase in using the single stranded DNA method [Chen, H.-B. et al, Nucl. Acids Res., 18, 871(1990)]. And fragment NH was formed from three duplexes K, L and M by the classical double stranded DNA method. Finally,     

Identification of γ-AApeptides with potent and broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity

We report the identification of a new class of antimicrobial peptidomimetics-γ-AApeptides with potent and broad-spectrum activity, including clinically-relevant strains that are unresponsive to most antibiotics. They are also not prone to select for drug-resistance.     

δ-Lactam derivative from thermophilic soil fungus exhibits in vitro anti-allergic activity

From cultures of thermophilic soil fungus Humicola grisea var thermoidea, a δ-lactam derivative (3-(2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-2-oxoethyl)-5,6-dihydropyridin-2(1H)-one) that displayed anti-allergic activity was isolated, which was predicted by in silico computational chemistry approaches. The in?vitro anti-allergic activity was investigated by β-hexosaminidase release assay in rat basophilic leukaemia RBL-2H3 cells. The δ-lactam derivative exhibited similar anti-allergic activity (IC(50)?=?18.7?±?6.7?μM) in comparison with ketotifen fumarate (IC(50)?=?15.0?±?1.3?μM) and stronger anti-allergic activity than azelastine (IC(50)?=?32.0?μM). Also, the MTT cytotoxicity assay with RBL-2H3 cells showed that δ-lactam does not display cytotoxicity at concentrations lower than 50?μM. This study suggests that the δ-lactam derivative has the potential to be used as a lead compound in the development of anti-allergic drugs for clinical use in humans.     

The synthesis and activity in vitro of a series of 8-difluoromethoxy quinolones： Analogues of gemifloxacin

7-[4-(Aminomethyl)-3-(methoxyimino)pyrrolidin-1-yl]-1-cyclopropyl-6-fluoro-8-difluoromethoxy-1,4-dihydro-4-oxoquino- line-3-carboxylic acid and its analogues have been prepared and evaluated for antibacterial activity in vitro.     

Total synthesis of (−)-vitrenal and its biological activity

(−)-Vitrenal, the enantiomer of a natural sesquiterpene aldehyde isolated from a liverwort, has been synthesized starting from (+)-Δ³-carene, and its activity as a plant-growth regulator has been tested.     

“Green synthesis” of benzothiazepine library of indeno analogues and their in vitro antimicrobial activity

A novel series of indeno-benzothiazepine derivatives was synthesised via a “green” route. Synthesis of these compounds involves the treatment of dinucleophiles such as 2-aminobenzenethiols with α,β-unsaturated ketones in poly(oxyethylene) (poly(ethylene glycol), PEG-400) catalysed by acetic acid. The synthone α,β-unsaturated ketones were obtained by Claisen-Schmidt condensation of indan-1-one with substituted pyrazole-2-carbaldehydes prompted by bleaching earth (pH 12.5) as catalyst and PEG-400 as “green” reaction solvent. Screening of all the synthesised compounds for antimicrobial activity revealed that most of these compounds exhibited moderate to significant antimicrobial activity.