Synthetic Routes to Coelenterazine and Other Imidazo[1,2‐a]pyrazin‐3‐one Luciferins: Essential Tools for Bioluminescence‐Based Investigations

In the last few decades, bioluminescent systems based on the expression of a luciferase and the addition of a luciferin to monitor the emission of light have become very important tools for biological investigations. A growing proportion of these systems use coelenterazine or analogues of imidazo[1,2‐a]pyrazine luciferins along with photoproteins or luciferases from sea creatures such as Aequorea, Renilla, Gaussia or Oplophorus. Central to the success of these tools are the synthetic pathways developed not only to prepare the naturally occurring luciferins, but also to design altered compounds that exhibit improved bioluminescence. Current work is indeed focused on the design of systems exhibiting extended luminescence (“glow” systems) or redshifted wavelengths, as well as constructions better adapted to conditions in cells or in vivo. This review describes the synthetic pathways used to prepare imidazo[1,2‐a]pyrazine luciferins along with the research efforts aimed at preparing analogues even better suited to the design of assays.     

Development of Luminescent Coelenterazine Derivatives Activatable by β‐Galactosidase for Monitoring Dual Gene Expression

Two bioluminogenic caged coelenterazine derivatives (bGalCoel and bGalNoCoel) were designed and synthesized to detect β‐galactosidase activity and expression by means of bioluminescence imaging. Our approach addresses the instability of coelenterazine by introducing β‐galactose caging groups to block the auto‐oxidation of coelenterazine. Both probes contain β‐galactosidase cleavable caging groups at the carbonyl group of the imidazo–pyrazinone moiety. One of the probes in particular, bGalNoCoel, displayed a fast cleavage profile, high stability, and high specificity for β‐galactosidase over other glycoside hydrolases. bGalN‐oCoel could detect β‐galactosidase activity in living HEK‐293T cell cultures that expressed a mutant Gaussia luciferase. It was determined that coelenterazine readily diffuses in and out of cells after uncaging by β‐galactosidase. We showed that this new caged coelenterazine derivative, bGalNoCoel, could function as a dual‐enzyme substrate and detect enzyme activity across two separate cell populations.     

A quantum chemical study of the formation of 2-hydroperoxy-coelenterazine in the Ca<Superscript>2+</Superscript>-regulated photoprotein obelin

The Ca²⁺-regulated photoprotein obelin determines the luminescence of the marine hydroid Obelia longissima. Bioluminescence is initiated by calcium and appears as a result of the oxidative decarboxylation related to the coelenterazine substrate. The luciferase of the luminescent marine coral Renilla muelleri (RM) also uses coelenterazine as a substrate. However, three proteins are involved in the in vivo bioluminescence of these animals: luciferase, green fluorescent protein, and Ca²⁺-regulated coelenterazine-binding protein (CBP). In fact, CBP that contains one strongly bound coelenterazine molecule is the RM luciferase substrate in the in vivo bioluminescent reaction. Coelenterazine becomes available for oxygen and the reaction with luciferase only after binding CBP with calcium ions. Unlike Ca²⁺-regulated photoproteins, the coelenterazine molecule is not activated by oxygen in the CBP molecule. In this work, by means of quantum chemical methods the behavior of substrates in these proteins is analyzed. It is shown that coelenterazine can form different tautomers: CLZ(2H) and CLZ(7H). The formation of 2-hydroperoxy-coelenterazine is studied. According to the obtained data, these proteins use different forms of the substrates for the reaction. In obelin, the substrate is in the CLZ(2H) form that affords hydrogen peroxide. In RM, coelenterazine is in the CLZ(7H) form, and therefore, CBP is not activated by oxygen.     

Coelenterazine-v ligated to Ca2+-triggered coelenterazine-binding protein is a stable and efficient substrate of the red-shifted mutant of Renilla muelleri luciferase

It has been shown that the coelenterazine analog, coelenterazine-v, is an efficient substrate for a reaction catalyzed by Renilla luciferase. The resulting bioluminescence emission maximum is shifted to a longer wavelength up to 40 nm, which allows the use of some “yellow” Renilla luciferase mutants for in vivo imaging. However, the utility of coelenterazine-v in small-animal imaging has been hampered by its instability in solution and in biological tissues. To overcome this drawback, we ligated coelenterazine-v to Ca²⁺-triggered coelenterazine-binding protein from Renilla muelleri, which apparently functions in the organism for stabilizing and protecting coelenterazine from oxidation. The coelenterazine-v bound within coelenterazine-binding protein has revealed a greater long-term stability at both 4 and 37 °C. In addition, the coelenterazine-binding protein ligated by coelenterazine-v yields twice the total light over free coelenterazine-v as a substrate for the red-shifted R. muelleri luciferase. These findings suggest the possibility for effective application of coelenterazine-v in various in vitro assays.     

Shining Light on the Secreted Luciferases of Marine Copepods: Current Knowledge and Applications

Copepod luciferases—a family of small secretory proteins of 18.4–24.3 kDa, including a signal peptide—are responsible for bright secreted bioluminescence of some marine copepods. The copepod luciferases use coelenterazine as a substrate to produce blue light in a simple oxidation reaction without any additional cofactors. They do not share sequence or structural similarity with other identified bioluminescent proteins including coelenterazine‐dependent Renilla and Oplophorus luciferases. The small size, strong luminescence activity and high stability, including thermostability, make secreted copepod luciferases very attractive candidates as reporter proteins which are particularly useful for nondisruptive reporter assays and for high‐throughput format. The most known and extensively investigated representatives of this family are the first cloned GpLuc and MLuc luciferases from copepods Gaussia princeps and Metridia longa, respectively. Immediately after cloning, these homologous luciferases were successfully applied as bioluminescent reporters in vivo and in vitro, and since then, the scope of their applications continues to grow. This review is an attempt to systemize and critically evaluate the data scattered through numerous articles regarding the main structural features of copepod luciferases, their luminescent and physicochemical properties. We also review the main trends of their application as bioluminescent reporters in cell and molecular biology.     

Tyr72 and Tyr80 are Involved in the Formation of an Active Site of a Luciferase of Copepod Metridia longa

Luciferase of copepod Metridia longa (MLuc) is a naturally secreted enzyme catalyzing the oxidative decarboxylation of coelenterazine with the emission of light. To date, three nonallelic isoforms of different lengths (17–24 kDa) for M. longa luciferase have been cloned. All the isoforms are single‐chain proteins consisting of a 17‐residue signal peptide for secretion, variable N‐terminal part and conservative C‐terminus responsible for luciferase activity. In contrast to other bioluminescent proteins containing a lot of aromatic residues which are frequently involved in light emission reaction, the C‐terminal part of MLuc contains only four Phe, two Tyr, one Trp and two His residues. To figure out whether Tyr residues influence bioluminescence, we constructed the mutants with substitution of Tyr to Phe (Y72F and Y80F). Tyrosine substitutions do not eliminate the ability of luciferase to bioluminescence albeit significantly reduce relative specific activity and change bioluminescence kinetics. In addition, the Tyr replacements have no effect on bioluminescence spectrum, thereby indicating that tyrosines are not involved in the emitter formation. However, as it was found that the intrinsic fluorescence caused by Tyr residues is quenched by a reaction substrate, coelenterazine, in concentration‐dependent manner, we infer that both tyrosine residues are located in the luciferase substrate‐binding cavity.     

Cobalt‐Catalyzed Z‐Selective Hydrosilylation of Terminal Alkynes

A cobalt‐catalyzed Z ‐selective hydrosilylation of alkynes has been developed relying on catalysts generated from bench‐stable Co(OAc)₂ and pyridine‐2,6‐diimine (PDI) ligands. A variety of functionalized aromatic and aliphatic alkynes undergo this transformation, yielding Z ‐vinylsilanes in high yields with excellent selectivities (Z /E ratio ranges from 90:10 to >99:1). The addition of a catalytic amount of phenol effectively suppressed the Z /E ‐isomerization of the Z ‐vinylsilanes that formed under catalytic conditions.     

A fusion protein of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Luciola mingrelica</Emphasis> luciferase with a biotin-binding domain: Production,properties, and application

A plasmid encoding a fusion protein (4TS-bccp87) composed of a thermostable mutant of the Luciola mingrelica firefly luciferase (4TS) and 87 carboxy-terminal amino acid residues of the biotin-binding domain (bccp87) from E. coli was constructed using genetic-engineering techniques. It was established that fusion-protein expression in BL21(DE3) E. coli resulted in 60% of the biotinylated form. The catalytic properties, thermostability, and bioluminescence spectra of the fusion protein were shown to be similar to that of the initial luciferase. The possibility of using the streptavidin-biotinylated luciferase complex for defining the Salmonella typhimurium cell concentration in the range from 10⁴ to 5 × 10⁶ CFU/ml by enzyme immunoassay was shown.     

Mass spectrometric characterization of the zein protein composition in maize flour extracts upon protein separation by SDS‐PAGE and 2D gel electrophoresis

Highly homogenous α zein protein was isolated from maize kernels in an environment‐friendly process using 95% ethanol as solvent. Due to the polyploidy and genetic polymorphism of the plant source, the application of high resolution separation methods in conjunction with precise analytical methods, such as MALDI‐TOF‐MS, is required to accurately estimate homogeneity of products that contain natural zein protein. The α zein protein product revealed two main bands in SDS‐PAGE analysis, one at 25 kDa and other at 20 kDa apparent molecular mass. Yet, high resolution 2DE revealed approximately five protein spot groups in each row, the first at ca. 25 kDa and the second at ca. 20 kDa. Peptide mass fingerprinting data of the proteins in the two dominant SDS‐PAGE bands matched to 30 amino acid sequence entries out of 102 non‐redundant data base entries. MALDI‐TOF‐MS peptide mapping of the proteins from all spots indicated the presence of only α zein proteins. The most prominent ion signals in the MALDI mass spectra of the protein mixture of the 25 kDa SDS gel band after in‐gel digestion were found at m/z 1272.6 and m/z 2009.1, and the most prominent ion signals of the protein mixture of the 20 kDa band after in‐gel digestion were recorded at m/z 1083.5 and m/z 1691.8. These ion signals have been found typical for α zein proteins and may serve as marker ion signals which upon chymotryptic digestion reliably indicate the presence of α zein protein in two hybrid corn products.     

Improved molecular weight control in ring‐opening metathesis polymerization reactions in organic and aqueous media using N‐heterocyclic carbene–ruthenium arene/alkyne catalyst systems

A binary catalytic system, RuCl₂(N‐heterocyclic carbene)(p‐cymene)/alkyne, was developed for improved molecular weight control in ring‐opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) reactions of norbornene derivatives in organic and aqueous media. Monometallic ruthenium arene compounds were activated using aryl and aliphatic terminal alkynes to form highly active metathesis species. The effects of alkyne structure and concentration on the overall catalytic activity were systematically investigated. The catalytic activity of the metathesis active species can be tuned by varying alkyne substituents. Also, the initiation rate of the ROMP reaction can be tuned by increasing the alkyne‐to‐Ru ratio. ROMP polymers with a wide range of molecular weights (91–832 kDa) were isolated in organic media, whereas polymers with a molecular weight range of 110–280 kDa with average particle sizes of 150–250 nm were isolated in aqueous media. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Characterization of Xyn10J,a Novel Family 10 Xylanase from a Compost Metagenomic Library

A gene encoding an extracellular xylanase was cloned from a compost metagenomic library. The xylanase gene, xyn10J, was 1,137 bp in length and was predicted to encode a protein of 378 amino acid residues with a putative signal peptide of 27 amino acid residues. The molecular mass of the mature Xyn10J was calculated to be 39,882 Da with a pI of 6.09. Xyn10J had a motif GVKVHFTEMDI characteristic of most members of glycosyl hydrolase family 10. The amino acid sequence of Xyn10J showed 60.0% identity to that of XynH, a xylanase from an uncultured soil bacterium and 55% identity to XylC of Cellvibrio mixtus. Site-directed mutagenesis of the expected active site based on the sequence analysis indicated that an aspartic acid residue (Asp207), in addition to the identified catalytic residues Glu165 and Glu270, plays a crucial role for the catalytic activity. The purified Xyn10J had a mass of about 40 kDa and was optimally active at pH 7.0 and 40 °C. Xyn10J hydrolyzed beechwood xylan > birchwood xylan > oat spelt xylan > arabinoxylan. Xyn10J hydrolyzed xylotetraose and xylohexaose exclusively to xylobiose, xylopentaose, and xylotriose mainly to xylobiose with transglycosylation activity. The saccharification of reed (Phragmites communis) powder by commercial enzymes was significantly increased by the addition of a small amount of Xyn10J to the commercial preparation. Xyn10J is the first xylanase screened directly from a compost metagenomic library, and the enzyme has the potential to be used in the conversion of biomass to fermentable sugars for biofuel production.     

Regio‐ and Enantioselective Synthesis of Trifluoromethyl‐Substituted Homoallylic α‐Tertiary NH2‐Amines by Reactions Facilitated by a Threonine‐Based Boron‐Containing Catalyst

A method for catalytic regio‐ and enantioselective synthesis of trifluoromethyl‐substituted and aryl‐, heteroaryl‐, alkenyl‐, and alkynyl‐substituted homoallylic α‐tertiary NH₂‐amines is introduced. Easy‐to‐synthesize and robust N‐silyl ketimines are converted to NH‐ketimines in situ, which then react with a Z‐allyl boronate. Transformations are promoted by a readily accessible l ‐threonine‐derived aminophenol‐based boryl catalyst, affording the desired products in up to 91 % yield, >98:2 α:γ selectivity, >98:2 Z:E selectivity, and >99:1 enantiomeric ratio. A commercially available aminophenol may be used, and allyl boronates, which may contain an alkyl‐, a chloro‐, or a bromo‐substituted Z‐alkene, can either be purchased or prepared by catalytic stereoretentive cross‐metathesis. What is more, Z‐trisubstituted allyl boronates may be used. Various chemo‐, regio‐, and diastereoselective transformations of the α‐tertiary homoallylic NH₂‐amine products highlight the utility of the approach; this includes diastereo‐ and regioselective epoxide formation/trichloroacetic acid cleavage to generate differentiated diol derivatives.     

Molecular Analysis of OsLEA4 and Its Contributions to Improve <Emphasis Type="BoldItalic">E. coli</Emphasis> Viability

OsLEA4, a late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) protein gene from rice (Oryza sativa L.), contains a 312-bp open reading frame encoding a putative polypeptide of 103 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 11.19 kDa and a theoretical pI of 10.04. OsLEA4 polypeptide is rich in Ala (22%), Lys (15%), Glu (9%), His (8%), Thr (8%), and Arg (7%) and lacking in Trp, Cys, Asn, and Phe residues. OsLEA4 protein contains a Pfam:LEA_1 domain architecture at positions 1–73 with three α-helical domains and without β-sheet domain. In silico predictions showed that OsLEA4 protein was strongly hydrophilic with the grand average of hydropathy value of −0.816 and instability index of 27.31. The hydrophilic regions were found in the conserved motif of OsLEA4. OsLEA4 gene was introduced into Escherichia coli, and a fusion protein (∼29.4 kDa) was expressed after isopropylthio-β-d-galactoside inducting by sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis. OsLEA4 protein enhanced the tolerance of E. coli recombinant to high salinity, heat, freezing, and UV radiation, which suggested that OsLEA4 protein may play a protective role under stressed conditions. This is the first successful use of E. coli as a prokaryotic system for LEA production from rice.     

Cobalt‐based metal coordination polymers with 4,4′‐bipyridinyl groups: highly efficient catalysis for one‐pot synthesis of 3,4‐dihydropyrimidin‐2(1H)‐ones under solvent‐free conditions

Three new metal coordination complexes, namely [Co(BPY)₂(H₂O)₂](BPY)(BS)₂(H₂O)₄ ( 1 ), [Co(BPY)₂(H₂O)₄](ABS)₂(H₂O)₂ ( 2 ) and [Co(BPY)(H₂O)₄](MBS)₂ ( 3 ) (BPY = 4,4′‐bipyridine, BS = phenylsulfonic acid, ABS = p‐aminobenzenesulfonic acid, MBS = p‐methylbenzenesulfonic acid), were obtained under hydrothermal conditions. Complexes 1 , 2 , 3 were structurally characterized using single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. All of them display low‐dimensional motifs: complex 1 displays a two‐dimensional structure; and complexes 2 and 3 exhibit a one‐dimensional tape structure. Through strong intermolecular hydrogen bonding interactions and weak packing interactions, all of them further stack to generate a three‐dimensional supramolecular architecture. Catalysts 1 , 2 , 3 were involved in the green synthesis of a variety of 3,4‐dihydropyrimidin‐2(1H)‐ones under solvent‐free conditions through Biginelli reactions. The corresponding catalytic product was obtained in quantitative yields (99%) under eco‐friendly synthesis conditions for the variety of reactions. Catalysts 1 , 2 , 3 exhibit excellent efficiency for the desired product, and their catalytic performance shows the following order: 2  >  1  ≈  3 , which can be ascribed to the hydrophobic interactions of different phenylsulfonate groups. The catalytic performance for the Biginelli reaction is not only dependent on the selected solvents, but also inversely proportional to the polarities of the solvents. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Catalyst‐Enabled Diastereodivergent Aza‐Diels–Alder Reaction: Complementarity of N‐Heterocyclic Carbenes and Chiral Amines

Highly efficient and diastereodivergent aza‐Diels–Alder reactions have been developed to access either diastereomeric series of benzofuran‐fused δ‐lactams and dihydropyridines in nearly perfect stereoselectivity (d.r. >20:1, >99 % ee for all examples). The complementarity of N‐heterocyclic carbene and chiral amine as the catalyst was demonstrated for the first time, together with an excellent level of catalytic efficiency (1 mol % loading).     

Synthesis,structure and in vitro anticancer,DNA binding and cleavage activity of palladium (II) complexes based on isatin thiosemicarbazone derivatives

Six novel palladium(II) complexes of a thiosemicarbazone Schiff base with isatin moiety (PdL1 to PdL6) were synthesized by the reaction of palladium(II) with the following: (Z )‐2‐(2‐oxoindolin‐3‐ylidene)‐N ‐phenylhydrazinecarbothioamide (L1H), (Z )‐2‐(5‐methyl‐2‐oxoindolin‐3‐ylidene)‐N ‐phenylhydrazinecarbothioamide (L2H), (Z )‐2‐(5‐fluoro‐2‐oxoindolin‐3‐ylidene)‐N ‐phenylhydrazinecarbothioamide (L3H), (Z )‐N ‐methyl‐2‐(5‐nitro‐2‐oxoindolin‐3‐ylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide (L4H), (Z )‐N ‐methyl‐2‐(5‐methyl‐2‐oxoindolin‐3‐ylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide (L5H) and (Z )‐N ‐ethyl‐2‐(5‐methyl‐2‐oxoindolin‐3‐ylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide (L6H). The structures of these complexes were characterized using elemental analysis and infrared, UV–visible, ¹H NMR and mass spectroscopies. The structure of PdL5 was further characterized using single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. The interaction of these complexes with calf thymus DNA was characterized with a high intrinsic binding constant (K _b = 5.78 × 10⁴ to 1.79 × 10⁶ M⁻¹), which reflected the intercalative activity of these complexes towards calf thymus DNA. This result was also confirmed from viscosity data. Electrophoresis studies revealed that complexes PdL1 to PdL6 could cleave DNA via an oxidative pathway in the presence of an external agent. Data obtained from an in vitro anti‐proliferative study clearly established the anticancer potency of these compounds against the human colorectal carcinoma cell line HCT 116.     

o‐Amino Analogs of Green Fluorescence Protein Chromophore: Photoisomerization,Photodimerization and Aggregation‐induced Emission

The photochemical properties of three o‐amino analogs of the green fluorescence protein chromophore O0, O1 and O8 (o‐ABDIs) have been investigated and compared with those of the m‐ and p‐amino isomers (m‐ABDIs and p‐ABDIs) in solutions, aggregates, and the solid state. In aprotic solvents, the fluorescence competes with the Z → E photoisomerization for all cases, and the o‐ABDIs display a fluorescence quantum efficiency of 1–6%, lying between the m‐ABDIs of 5–48% and the p‐ABDIs of < 0.1%. The fluorescence of both the o‐ and m‐ABDIs is nearly quenched in protic solvents, attributable to the solvent–solute hydrogen bonding (SSHB) interactions. The phenomenon of aggregation‐induced emission observed for O8 in poor solvents resembles the behavior of M8 as a consequence of exclusion of the SSHB interactions and restriction of internal rotation for molecules located inside the aggregates. The occurrence of [2 + 2] photodimerization for O0 in the solid state is unique among the ABDIs, and the X‐ray crystal structures of O0 and the photodimer OD reveal the head‐to‐tail syn‐oriented stereochemistry. Analysis on the X‐ray crystal structures of O0, O1, M0, M1 and P0 shows that not only the pairwise topochemical geometry but also the columnar packing mode is important in determining the photodimerization reactivity.