Potent and specific sialyltransferase inhibitors: imino-linked 5a'-carbadisaccharides

Methyl 5a'-carba-beta-lactoside, imino-linked, has been shown to possess potent and specific inhibitory activity (IC50 = 185 microM) toward rat recombinant alpha2,3-sialyltransferase.     

Aldolase-catalyzed synthesis of beta-D-galp-(1-->9)-D-KDN: a novel acceptor for sialyltransferases

[reaction: see text] beta-D-Galp-(1-->9)-D-KDN, a disaccharide component of the cell wall of Streptomyces sp. MB-8, was synthesized from beta-D-Galp-(1-->6)-D-Manp and pyruvate using a sialic acid aldolase. The obtained KDN-containing compound was a novel acceptor for bacterial sialyltransferases. Unusual alpha2,3- and alpha2,6-linked sialyltrisaccharides and a tetrasaccharide were synthesized using a one-pot two-enzyme system containing a Neisseria meningitidis CMP-sialic acid synthetase and a Pasteurella multocida sialyltransferase or a Photobacterium damsela alpha2,6-sialyltransferase.     

The design and synthesis of a selective inhibitor of fucosyltransferase VI

Inversion of configuration of the C-2[prime or minute] hydroxyl of methyl N-acetyllactosamine was accomplished by a two-step procedure involving oxidation to a ketone followed by reduction with NaBH(4). After deprotection, the resulting derivative was examined as a substrate for [small alpha]-(2,6)- and [small alpha]-(2,3)-sialyltransferase and fucosyltransferase III, IV, V and VI. It was found that none of these enzymes could glycosylate. However, it showed exquisite selectivity for inhibition of fucosyltransferase VI. The kinetic data support an unusual mechanism in which the inhibitor can bind to the GDP-fucose complex as well as another enzyme form.     

Efficient sialyltransferase inhibitors based on glycosides of N-acetylglucosamine

D-Glucosamine was transformed into phenyl and 2-benzoyloxyethyl N-acetylglucosamine beta-glycosides 6a and 6b, respectively. Transformation of 6a,b into 6-O-unprotected N-acetylglucosamine derivatives 9a,b permitted the generation of an aldehyde group in the 6-position. Treatment of these intermediates with base afforded unsaturated aldehyde derivatives 10a,b, which are structural mimics of 2,3-dehydroneuraminic acid. H-Phosphonate addition to the aldehyde group and attachment of the cytidine monophosphate residue to the generated hydroxy group gave fully protected transition state analogues of cytidine monophosphate-N-acetylneuraminic acid 14a,b. Liberation of the unprotected compounds 1ah,l and 1bh,l led to excellent inhibitors of alpha(2-6)-sialyltransferase from rat liver. Variation of the protective group cleavage procedure for 14a,b led to formal loss of phosphate, thus resulting in diene derivatives (E)-/(Z)-2a,b, which also exhibited inhibitory properties.     

Lithocholic acid analogues, new and potent alpha-2,3-sialyltransferase inhibitors

A new type of noncompetitive alpha-2,3-sialyltransferase inhibitor has been synthesized; we report the discovery, preparation and inhibitory activity of sixteen lithocholic acid analogues.     

Efficient chemoenzymatic synthesis of sialyl Tn-antigens and derivatives

An N-terminal and C-terminal truncated recombinant α2-6-sialyltransferase cloned from Photobacterium sp. JH-ISH-224, Psp2,6ST(15-501)-His(6), was shown to be an efficient catalyst for one-pot three-enzyme synthesis of sialyl Tn (STn) antigens and derivatives containing natural and non-natural sialic acid forms.     

An efficient synthesis of a biantennary sialooligosaccharide analog using a 1,6-anhydro-β-lactose derivative as a key synthetic block

An efficient and versatile method for the synthesis of a biantennary octasaccharide derivative was established by combined chemical and enzymatic manipulations of 1,6-anhydro-β-lactose as a key starting material. A key 1,6-anhydro-β-lactose derivative having two unprotected hydroxyl groups at C-3′ and C-6′ positions was prepared and employed for the chemical coupling reaction with a known 3,4,6-tri-O-acetyl-2-deoxy-2-phthalimido-β-d-glucopyranosyl imidate to afford a tetrasaccharide derivative with two GlcNAc branches in 69% yield. Enzymatic galactosylation using UDP-Gal with a bovine milk β1,4-galactosyltransferase and subsequent sialylation with a recombinant α2,3-sialyltransferase in the presence of CMP-Neu5Ac proceeded smoothly and gave a desired model compound, a bivalent sialooctasaccharide (1), in 73% overall yield from the tetrasaccharide intermediate.     

Glycoinsulins: dendritic sialyloligosaccharide-displaying insulins showing a prolonged blood-sugar-lowering activity

Mono-, di-, and trisialyloligosaccharides were introduced to mutant insulins through enzymatic reactions. Sugar chains were sialylated by alpha2,6-sialyltransferase (alpha2,6-SiaT) via an accessible glutamine residue at the N-terminus of the B-chain attached by transglutaminase (TGase). Sia2,6-di-LacNAc-Ins(B-F1Q) and Sia2,6-tri-LacNAc-Ins(B-F1Q), displaying two and three sialyl-N-acetyllactosamines, respectively, were administered to hyperglycemic mice. Both branched glycoinsulins showed prolonged glucose-lowering effects compared to native or lactose-carrying insulins, showing that sialic acid is important in obtaining a prolonged effect. Sia2,6-tri-LacNAc-Ins(B-F1Q), in particular, induced a significant delay in the recovery of glucose levels.     

Asymmetric three- and [2 + 1]-component conjugate addition reactions for the stereoselective synthesis of polysubstituted piperidinones

The efficiency and stereoselectivity of the conjugate addition of lithium (Z)- or (E)-beta-amino ester enolates, generated by lithium amide conjugate addition to an alpha,beta-unsaturated ester or deprotonation of a beta-amino ester, respectively, to a range of alpha,beta-unsaturated acceptors has been investigated. Deprotonation of a beta-amino ester with LDA, followed by conjugate addition to a chiral alpha,beta-unsaturated oxazolidinone gives high 2,3-anti selectivity ( approximately 90% d.e.), with hydrogenolysis and purification to homogeneity generating stereodefined trisubstituted piperidinones as single stereoisomers. Asymmetric three-component couplings of alpha,beta-unsaturated esters and alkylidene malonates initiated by lithium amide conjugate addition proceeds with high levels of 2,3-anti stereoselectivity, with hydrogenolysis giving tetrasubstituted piperidinones.     

An α2,3-Sialyltransferase from Photobacterium phosphoreum with Broad Substrate Scope: Controlling Hydrolytic Activity by Directed Evolution

Defined sialoglycoconjugates are important molecular probes for studying the role of sialylated glycans in biological systems. We show that the α2,3-sialyltransferase from Photobacterium phosphoreum JT-ISH-467 (2,3SiaT_pph) tolerates a very broad substrate scope for modifications in the sialic acid part, including bulky amide variation, C5/C9 substitution, and C5 stereoinversion. To reduce the enzyme's hydrolytic activity, which erodes the product yield, an extensive structure-guided mutagenesis study identified three variants that show up to five times higher catalytic efficiency for sialyltransfer, up to ten times lower efficiency for substrate hydrolysis, and drastically reduced product hydrolysis. Variant 2,3SiaT_pph (A151D) displayed the best performance overall in the synthesis of the GM3 trisaccharide (α2,3-Neu5Ac-Lac) from lactose in a one-pot, two-enzyme cascade. Our study demonstrates that several complementary solutions can be found to suppress the common problem of undesired hydrolysis activity of microbial GT80 sialyltransferases. The new enzymes are powerful catalysts for the synthesis of a wide variety of complex natural and new-to-nature sialoconjugates for biological studies.     

Separation of basic drug enantiomers by capillary electrophoresis using chicken alpha1-acid glycoprotein: insight into chiral recognition mechanism

Recombinant chicken alpha(1)-acid glycoprotein (alpha(1)-AGP) was prepared by the Escherichia coli expression system and completely deglycosylated alpha(1)-AGP (cd-alpha(1)-AGP) was obtained by treatments of native alpha(1)-AGP with a mixture of endoglycosidase and N-glycosidase. The average molecular masses of chicken alpha(1)-AGP, cd-alpha(1)-AGP and recombinant alpha(1)-AGP were estimated to be about 29 200, 21 700 and 20 700, respectively, by matrix-assisted laser desorption-time of flight-mass spectrometry. We compared the chiral recognition ability of chicken alpha(1)-AGP, cd-alpha(1)-AGP and recombinant alpha(1)-AGP using them as chiral selectors in capillary electrophoresis. The chicken alpha(1)-AGP showed higher resolution for eperisone, pindolol and tolperisone than cd-alpha(1)-AGP or recombinant alpha(1)-AGP. Recombinant alpha(1)-AGP still showed chiral recognition for three basic drugs tested. By addition of propranolol as a competitor in the separation solution in CE, no enantioseparations of three basic drugs were observed with chicken alpha(1)-AGP, cd-alpha(1)-AGP or recombinant alpha(1)-AGP. These results reveal that the protein domain of the chicken alpha(1)-AGP is responsible for the chiral recognition ability, and that the chiral recognition site(s) for basic drugs exists on the protein domain.     

Specificity of human natural antibody to recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) expressed in mouse C127 cells

A natural antibody with binding specificity for recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) expressed in mouse C127 cells was present in almost all disease-free humans and patients with thrombotic disease examined. This antibody was specific for a carbohydrate, alpha 1-3-linked galactose residue, and was isolated by affinity chromatography using Synsorb 90 coupled with the glycosidic epitope Gal alpha 1-3Gal beta 1-4Glc-R as an immunoadsorbent. The evaluation of various glycoproteins for ability to bind the purified antibody in ELISA demonstrated that not only recombinant t-PA from C127 cells but also recombinant erythropoietin (EPO) and recombinant protein C produced in C127 cells have alpha 1-3-linked galactose residues on their sugar side chains. This anti-alpha-galactosyl antibody also interacted with natural t-PA from human vascular trees (vascular t-PA) and placenta (placenta t-PA), but not to melanoma t-PA, recombinant t-PA, EPO or protein C expressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells.     

Synthesis and characterization of an anomeric sulfur analogue of CMP-sialic acid

alpha-2,3-Sialyltransferase catalyzes the transfer of sialic acid from CMP-sialic acid (1) to a lactose acceptor. An analogue of 1 was synthesized in which the anomeric oxygen atom was replaced with a sulfur atom (1S). The key step in the synthesis of 1S was a tetrazole-promoted coupling of a cytidine-5'-phosphoramidite with a glycosyl thiol of a protected sialic acid. Compounds 1 and 1S were characterized for their activity in a sialyl transfer assay. The rate of solvolysis in aqueous buffer of analogue 1S was 50-fold slower than that of 1. Analogue 1S was found to be substrate for alpha-2,3-sialyltransferase. The K(m) of 1S was just 3-fold higher than that of 1, while the k(cat) of 1S was 2 orders of magnitude lower compared to 1.     

Determination of 2,3-dinor-6-ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha in urine samples by liquid chromatography and radioimmunoassay

A method for 2,3-dinor-6-ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha quantification based on high-performance liquid chromatography-radioimmunoassay is described. Samples are acidified to pH 3 and processed through C18 disposable cartridges. The prostanoids are eluted with methyl formate and further separated on a reversed-phase column using acetonitrile-acetic acid-triethylamine buffer (32:68). Studies of the effect of eluent pH were performed in order to optimize resolution and separation of 2,3-dinor-6-keto-PGF1 alpha from other prostanoids. Eluates were collected and assayed by radioimmunoassay using a heterologous system, with 6-keto-PGF1 alpha as radioligand and an antiserum with high cross-reactivity for 2,3-dinor-6-keto-PGF1 alpha. Sensitivity, precision and accuracy of the assay procedure are reported together with the validation of its specificity. The proposed method has been applied to the determination of this prostacyclin metabolite in human urine.     

Construction of highly glycosylated mucin-type glycopeptides based on microwave-assisted solid-phase syntheses and enzymatic modifications

A MUC1-related glycopeptide having five core-2 hexasaccharide branches (C330H527N46O207, MW = 8450.9) was synthesized by a new strategy using a combination of microwave-assisted solid-phase synthesis (MA-SPGS) and enzymatic sugar elongation. Synthesis of a key glycopeptide intermediate was best achieved in a combination of PEGA [poly(ethylene glycol)-poly-(N,N-dimethylacrylamide) copolymer] resin and MA-SPGS using glycosylated amino acid building blocks with high speed and high purity. Deprotection of the glycopeptide intermediate and subsequent glycosyltransferase-catalyzed sugar elongations were performed for generation of the additional diversities with the sugar moieties of glycopeptides using beta1,4-galactosyltransferase (beta1,4-GalT) and two kinds of alpha2,3-sialyltransferases [ST3Gal III; alpha2,3-(N)-SiaT and ST3Gal II; alpha2,3-(O)-SiaT]. These reactions proceeded successfully in the presence of 0.2% Triton X-100 to convert the chemically synthesized trisaccharide glycans to disialylated hexasaccharide.     

Chemo-enzymatic synthesis of conformationally constrained oligosaccharides

N-Acetyllactosamine derivative 4, which has a methylene amide tether between C-6 and C-2', was enzymatically glycosylated using rat liver alpha-2,6-sialyltransferase (ST6GalI) or recombinant human fucosyltransferase V (FucT-V) to give conformationally constrained trisaccharides 5 and 6, respectively. The methylene amide linker of 4 was installed by a two-step procedure, which involved acylation of a C-6 amino function of a LacNAc derivative with chloroacetic anhydride followed by macrocyclization by nucleophilic displacement of the chloride by a C-2' hydroxyl. The conformational properties of 4 were determined by a combination of NOE and trans-glycosidic heteronuclear coupling constant measurements and molecular mechanics simulations and these studies established that the glycosidic linkage of 4 is conformationally constrained and resides in only one of the several energy minima accessible to LacNAc. The apparent kinetic parameters of transfer to LacNAc and conformationally constrained saccharides 3 and 4 indicates that fucosyltransferase V recognize LacNAc in its A-conformer whereas alpha-2,6-sialyltransferase recognizes the B-conformer of LacNAc.     

Efficient chemoenzymatic synthesis of O-linked sialyl oligosaccharides

The tumor associated Tn (GalNAcalpha(1-1)-Thr/Ser)- and T (Galbeta(1-3)-GalNAcalpha(1-1)Thr/Ser)-antigens and their sialylated derivatives are present on the surface of many cancer cells. Preparative synthesis of these sialylated T- and Tn-structures has been achieved mainly from a chemical synthetic approach due to the lack of the required glycosyltransferases. We demonstrate a flexible and efficient chemoenzymatic approach for using recombinant sialyltransferases including a chicken GalNAcalpha2,6-sialyltransferase (chST6GalNAc I) and a porcine Galbeta(1-3)GalNAcalpha-2,3-sialyltransferase (pST3Gal I). Using these enzymes, the common O-linked sialosides Neu5Acalpha(2-6)GalNAcalpha(1-1)Thr, Galbeta(1-3)[Neu5Acalpha(2-6)]GalNAcalpha(1-1)Thr, Neu5Acalpha(2-3)Galbeta(1-3)GalNAcalpha(1-1)Thr, and Neu5Acalpha(2-3)Galbeta(1-3)[Neu5Acalpha(2-6)]GalNAcalpha(1-1)Thr were readily prepared at preparative scale. The chST6GalNAc I was found to require at least one amino acid (Thr/Ser) for optimal activity, and is thus an ideal catalyst for synthesis of synthetic glycopeptides and glycoconjugates with O-linked glycans.     

Solid- and liquid-phase extraction for the gas chromatographic-tandem mass spectrometric quantification of 2,3-dinor-thromboxane B2 and 2,3-dinor-6-oxo-prostaglandin F1 alpha in human urine

Whole body synthesis of thromboxane A2 is best assessed by quantifying non-invasively its major urinary metabolite, i.e., 2,3-dinor-thromboxane B2 (2,3-dn-TxB2), by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) or GC-tandem MS. Methods based on these techniques usually require a series of extraction and purification procedures including solid-phase extraction (SPE) and thin-layer chromatography (TLC) or liquid chromatographic separation of authentic or derivatized 2,3-dn-TxB2. Taking advantage of the inherent accuracy of GC-tandem MS and the high selectivity of the extraction of methoximated 2,3-dn-TxB2 on phenylboronic acid SPE cartridges we developed a method that involves only SPE steps prior to quantification by GC-tandem MS. The method was validated by performing in parallel an additional TLC step. Method mean accuracy and precision were of the order of 103% and 95%, respectively. The method allows furthermore co-processing of the same urine sample to quantify accurately and rapidly the major urinary metabolite of prostacyclin, i.e., 2,3-dn-6-oxo-prostaglandin (PG) F1 alpha, by GC-tandem MS. The limit of detection of the method was below each 5 pg of 2,3-dn-TxB2 and 2,3-dn-6-oxo-PGF1 alpha per 5 ml of urine. Our study suggests that dinor metabolites of isothromboxanes and isoprostacyclins are not abundantly present in human urine.     

Chemoenzymatic synthesis of sialylated glycopeptides derived from mucins and T-cell stimulating peptides.

The Tn, T, sialyl-Tn, and 2,3-sialyl-T antigens are tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens expressed on mucins in epithelial cancers, such as those affecting the breast, ovary, stomach, and colon. Glycopeptides carrying these antigens are of interest for development of cancer vaccines and a short, chemoenzymatic strategy for their synthesis is reported. Building blocks corresponding to the Tn (GalNAc alpha-Ser/Thr) and T [Gal beta(1-->3)GalNAc alpha-Ser/Thr] antigens, which are relatively easy to obtain by chemical synthesis, were prepared and then used in the synthesis of glycopeptides on the solid phase. Introduction of sialic acid to give the sialyl-Tn [Neu5Ac alpha(2-->6)GalNAc alpha-Ser/Thr] and 2,3-sialyl-T [Neu5Ac alpha(2-->3)Gal beta(1-->3)GalNAc alpha-Ser/Thr] antigens is difficult when performed chemically at the building block level. Sialylation was therefore carried out with recombinant sialyltransferases in solution after cleavage of the Tn and T glycopeptides from the solid phase. In the same manner, the core 2 trisaccharide [Gal beta 1-->3(GlcNAc beta 1-->6)GalNAc] was incorporated in glycopeptides containing the T antigen by using a recombinant N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase. The outlined chemoenzymatic approach was applied to glycopeptides from the tandem repeat domain of the mucin MUC1, as well as to neoglycosylated derivatives of a T cell stimulating viral peptide.