Synthesis, pharmacokinetics, and metabolism of the C-terminal tripeptide of dermorphin and its diastereomer

A tritium-labeled C-terminal fragment of dermorphin (H-Tyr-13,4-3HJPro-Ser-NH2) and its isomer (H-Tyr-D-[3,4-3H]Pro-Ser-NH2) with molar radioactivity of 35 Ci/mmol were synthesized, and their pharmacokinetics and metabolism in rat organs were studied after their intramuscular injections. The tripeptides were detected in the blood only for 5 min after the injection, and maximum contents of both compounds (approximately 5% of the total amount of the injected label) were registered in the kidneys after 20 min. Both stereomers were shown to penetrate into the brain. We failed to detect any radioactive metabolite, except proline, due to rapid proteolytic degradation of these peptides.     

Synthesis and utilization of 13C and 15N backbone-labeled proline: NMR study of synthesized oxytocin with backbone-labeled C-terminal tripeptide amide

Summary. The ¹³C and ¹⁵N backbone-labeled proline was prepared using Oppolzer’s method based on application of a sultam as chiral auxiliary. This isotopomer was used in the synthesis of the ¹³C, ¹⁵N backbone-labeled C-terminal tripeptide amide fragment of neurohypophyseal hormone oxytocin. Finally, this tripeptide amide was coupled by segment condensation with N-Boc- or N-Fmoc-tocinoic acid, followed by N-deprotection with TFA or piperidine. The labeled oxytocin exhibited biological activity identical with that of natural oxytocin. A detailed ¹H, ¹³C and ¹⁵N NMR study confirmed the assigned oxytocin conformation containing a β-turn in the cyclic part of the molecule, stabilized by H-bond(s) that can be perturbed by the C-terminal tripeptide amide moiety as indicated by comparison of NMR data for both the tocine ring in oxytocin and tocinoic acid.     

Incorporation of vinylogous scaffolds in the C-terminal tripeptide of substance P.

Glycine-9 and leucine-10 of substance P (SP) are critical for (NK)-1 receptor recognition and agonist activity. Propsi(Z)-CH=CH(CH3)-CONH)Leu (or Met) and Propsi((E)-CH=CH(CH3)-CONH)Leu (or Met) have been introduced in the sequence of SP, in order to restrict the conformational flexibility of the C-terminal tripeptide, Gly-Leu-Met-NH2, of SP. Propsi((Z)-CH=C(CH2CH(CH3)2)-CONH)Met-NH2, with an isobutyl substituent to mimic the Leu side-chain, was also incorporated in place of the C-terminal tripeptide. The substituted-SP analogs were tested for their affinity to human NK-1 receptor specific binding sites (NK-1M and NK-1m) and their potency to stimulate adenylate cyclase and phospholipase C in Chinese Hamster ovary (CHO) cells transfected with the human NK-1 receptor. The most potent SP analogs [Pro9psi((Z)CH=C(CH3)CONH)Leu10]SP and [Pro9psi ((E)CH=C(CH3)CONH)Leu10]SP, are about 100-fold less potent than SP on both binding sites and second messenger pathways. These vinylogous (Z)- or (E)-CH=C(CH3)- or (Z)-CH=C(CH2CH(CH3)2) moieties hamper the correct positioning of the C-terminal tripeptide of SP within both the NK-1M- and NK-1m-specific binding sites. The origin of these lower potencies is related either to an incorrect peptidic backbone conformation and/or an unfavorable receptor interaction of the methyl or isobutyl group.     

Effects of alpha-melanotropin C-terminal tripeptide analogues on macrophage NO production

The C-terminal tripeptide of melanocyte-stimulating hormone, MSH (11-13) (Lys-Pro-Val), possesses strong anti-inflammatory actions, which are mediated via mechanisms that are not fully understood. To shed more light into these mechanisms we have here synthesised and evaluated the activities of L- and D-Val substituted cyclic modifications of MSH (11-13) on nitric oxide (NO) in macrophage RAW 264.7 cells, as well as on binding to melanocortin receptors (MCRs) in B16-F1 and MCR expressing insect cells, and for effects on cAMP. MSH (11-13) and its analogues did neither bind to MCRs nor stimulate cAMP in RAW 264.7 and B16-F1 cells, except H-, which showed a tendency to increase cAMP at high (10-100 microM) concentrations. However, all investigated peptides dose dependently inhibited NO in LPS/IFN-gamma-stimulated RAW 264.7, cells with a structure activity relationship suggesting the existence of a distinct receptive site. This site appears to be distinct from the MCRs and not linked with cAMP.     

Structure-activity relationships of endothelin: importance of the C-terminal moiety

The vasoconstrictor activities of various forms of derivatives of endothelin (ET) were characterized in vitro by measuring the contraction of porcine coronary artery strips. The removal of the C-terminal Trp21 reduced the molar potency of the peptide by nearly 3 orders of magnitude. The removal of amino acid residues from the C-terminus of ET(1-20) further attenuated the activity. Replacement of Trp21 with D-Trp, reduction and carboxamidomethylation of the four Cys residues, or cleavage at Lys9 by lysyl endopeptidase all lowered the potency approximately 200 fold. While both native ET and [D-Trp21]ET induced a very slow and sustained vasoconstriction, the other derivatives of ET listed above showed a much more rapid kinetics of vasoconstriction. These results indicate that the C-terminal Trp of ET is especially important for the potent and extremely long-lasting vasoconstrictor activity characteristic to ET.     

Identification of novel plasmin inhibitors possessing nitrile moiety as warhead

Lysine-nitrile derivatives having a trisubstituted benzene, which belongs to a new chemical class, were prepared and tested for inhibitory activities against plasmin and the highly homologous plasma kallikrein and urokinase. The use of the novel chemotype in the development of plasmin inhibitors has been demonstrated by derivatives of compound 9.     

Importance of the second binding loop and the C-terminal end of cystatin B (stefin B) for inhibition of cysteine proteinases.

The importance of residues in the second hairpin loop and the C-terminal end of mammalian cystatin B for binding of proteinases was elucidated by mutagenesis of the bovine inhibitor. Bovine cystatin B was modeled onto the crystal structure of the human inhibitor in complex with papain with minimal structural changes. Substitution of the two deduced contact residues in the second hairpin loop, Leu-73 and His-75, with Gly resulted in appreciably reduced affinities for papain and cathepsins H and B. These losses indicated that the two residues together contribute 20-30% of the free energy of binding of cystatin B to these enzymes and that Leu-73 is responsible for most of this contribution. In contrast, the small decrease in the affinity for cathepsin L suggested that the second hairpin loop is less important for inhibition of this proteinase. Replacement of the contact residue in the C-terminal end, Tyr-97, with Ala resulted in losses in affinity for papain and cathepsins L and H that were consistent with Tyr-97 contributing 6-12% of the energy of binding of cystatin B to these enzymes. However, this substitution minimally affected the affinity for cathepsin B, indicating that the C-terminal end is of limited importance for binding of this proteinase. All affinity decreases were due predominantly to increased dissociation rate constants. These results show that both the second hairpin loop and the C-terminal end of cystatin B contribute to anchoring the inhibitor to target proteinases, each of the two regions interacting with a different domain of the enzyme. However, the relative contributions of these two interactions vary with the proteinase.     

Affinity labelling of proteinases with tryptic specificity by peptides with C-terminal lysine chloromethyl ketone

Methods are described for the synthesis of peptides terminating in Lys-CH(2)Cl. The products were examined as affinity labels for several enzymes of trypsin-like specificity which are resistant to Tos-Lys-CH(2)Cl. In part, the inertness of the latter may be due to the sulphonamide group, since Z-Lys-CH(2)Cl was more effective. However, a number of tripeptides with C-terminal Lys-CH(2)Cl were superior in their ability to inactivate subtilisin, thrombin and plasma kallikrein. The possibility of developing enzyme-specific reagents selective for members within the trypsin-like group is demonstrated by Ala-Phe-Lys-CH(2)Cl, which readily inactivates plasma kallikrein but not thrombin.     

Synthesis of the tripeptide glycyl-L-leucyl-L-phenylalanine and its analogs]

Peptide Gly-L-Leu-L-Phe and its derivatives were synthesized by the C-end elongation utilizing DCC/HOBT technique and by enzymatic route with the help of papain using esters of N-benzyloxycarbonyl-glycine and -L-leucine as acyl donors have been suggested. The chemical, similarly to the enzymatic, synthesis was not accompanied by racemization. Conditions for HPLC separation and preparative isolation of the enzymatic reaction products were developed.     

Synthesis of neosaponins and neoglycolipids containing a chacotriosyl moiety

Alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->4)-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->2)]-beta-D-glucopyranose (chacotriose) is the oligosaccharide moiety of dioscin. Chacotriosyl trichloroacetimidate was synthesized from d-glucose and l-rhamnose, and glycosylated to mevalonate (diosgenin, cholesterol, and glycyrrhetic acid) to yield dioscin and neosaponins. In order to simplify the structure of the aglycone part, the mevalonate moiety was replaced with double-chain neoglycolipids that mimicked glycosyl ceramides. A cytotoxicity test revealed the importance of the glycosidic linkage of the naturally occurring beta-form and that dioscin and the neoglycolipid with the longest chain showed a moderate activity.     

Synthesis and biological activity of novel thiazolidin-4-ones with a carbohydrate moiety

Some novel 2-aryl-3-[5-deoxy-1,2-O-isopropylidene-α-d-xylofuranose-5-C-yl] thiazolidin-4-ones were synthesized by the three-component condensation of an amino sugar 1, an aromatic aldehyde 2, and mercaptoacetic acid 3 in the presence of DCC and DMAP at room temperature. Two diastereoisomers 4 and 5 were afforded as the main products in totally isolated yields of 25.4-70%. The reaction was carried out with almost no observed stereoselectivity except in the case of 2c, which showed a moderate stereoselectivity. The structures of the new compounds were determined by NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry (MS), and the configuration of the newly generated chiral carbon (C-2) in the thiazolidin-4-one ring was tentatively assigned based on the X-ray crystallographic structure of 5d and the comparison of their corresponding NMR signals. The antitumor (human cervical cancer cells) activity and the inhibition against the glycosidases (α-glucosidase, β-glucosidase, α-amylase) have been evaluated for the new compounds, some of which exhibited antitumor activity.     

The C-terminal domain of the measles virus nucleoprotein is intrinsically disordered and folds upon binding to the C-terminal moiety of the phosphoprotein

The nucleoprotein of measles virus consists of an N-terminal moiety, N(CORE), resistant to proteolysis and a C-terminal moiety, N(TAIL), hypersensitive to proteolysis and not visible as a distinct domain by electron microscopy. We report the bacterial expression, purification, and characterization of measles virus N(TAIL). Using nuclear magnetic resonance, circular dichroism, gel filtration, dynamic light scattering, and small angle x-ray scattering, we show that N(TAIL) is not structured in solution. Its sequence and spectroscopic and hydrodynamic properties indicate that N(TAIL) belongs to the premolten globule subfamily within the class of intrinsically disordered proteins. The same epitopes are exposed in N(TAIL) and within the nucleoprotein, which rules out dramatic conformational changes in the isolated N(TAIL) domain compared with the full-length nucleoprotein. Most unstructured proteins undergo some degree of folding upon binding to their partners, a process termed "induced folding." We show that N(TAIL) is able to bind its physiological partner, the phosphoprotein, and that it undergoes such an unstructured-to-structured transition upon binding to the C-terminal moiety of the phosphoprotein. The presence of flexible regions at the surface of the viral nucleocapsid would enable plastic interactions with several partners, whereas the gain of structure arising from induced folding would lead to modulation of these interactions. These results contribute to the study of the emerging field of natively unfolded proteins.     

Synthesis of analogues of the O-beta-D-ribofuranosyl nucleoside moiety of liposidomycins. Part 1: contribution of the amino group and the uracil moiety upon the inhibition of MraY

The O-beta-D-ribofuranosyl nucleoside I is the minimal structural entity of liposidomycins maintaining enzyme inhibitory activity. Modifications performed on both the primary amine and the uracil moieties clearly demonstrate their major contribution to the inhibition of the bacterial translocase (MraY).     

Synthesis and evaluation of tripeptidic plasmin inhibitors with nitrile as warhead

Plasmin is best known as the key molecule in the fibrinolytic system, which is critical for clot lysis and can initiate matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activation cascade. Along with MMP, plasmin is suggested to be involved in physiological processes that are linked to the risk of carcinoma formation. Plasmin inhibitors could be perceived as a promising new principle in the treatment of diseases triggered by plasmin. On the basis of the peptidic sequence derived from the synthetic plasmin substrate, a series of peptidic plasmin inhibitors possessing nitrile as warhead were prepared and evaluated for their inhibitory activities against plasmin and other serine proteases, plasma kallikrein and urokinase. The most potent peptidic inhibitors with the nitrile warhead exhibit the potency toward plasmin (IC₅₀ = 7.7–11 μM) and are characterized by their selectivity profile against plasma kallikrein and urokinase. The results and molecular modeling of the peptidic inhibitor complexed with plasmin reveal that the P2 residue makes favorable contacts with the open binding pocket comprising the S2 and S3 subsites of plasmin. Copyright © 2012 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis of nitrile derivatives of estrogens

The first time synthesis of 7alpha- and 11beta-nitrile estradiol is described. Reaction of 7alpha-cyano-19-nortestosterone with copper(II)bromide in acetonitrile at room temperature results in aromatization of the A-ring. Treatment of 11beta-cyano-19-nortestosterone-17-one under similar condition does not induce A-ring aromatization but rather results in bromination at the 2beta-position. However A-ring aromatized products are obtained when the latter compound is treated with Ac2O-Py-AcOCl, NBS and HCl.     

Synthesis and growth inhibition activity of alpha-bromoacrylic heterocyclic and benzoheterocyclic derivatives of distamycin A modified on the amidino moiety

The design, synthesis and in vitro activities of novel alpha-bromoacryloyl pyrazole, imidazole and benzoheterocyclic derivatives of distamycin A, in which the amidino moiety has been replaced by moieties of different physico-chemical features are described, and the structure-activity relationships are discussed. In spite of the relevance of these modifications on the distamycin frame, these derivatives showed significant growth inhibitory activity against mouse leukemia L1210 cells. Therefore, the presence of the amidino moiety, and in general of a basic moiety, is not an absolute requirement for biological activity of alpha-bromoacrylic derivatives of distamycin.     

Synthesis of tripeptide RGD amide by a combination of chemical and enzymatic methods

The tripeptide Bz-Arg-Gly-Asp(NH₂)OH was synthesized by a combination of chemical and enzymatic methods in this study. Firstly, Gly-Asp-(NH₂)₂ was synthesized by a novel chemical method in three steps including chloroacetylation of l-aspartic acid, esterification of chloroacetyl l-aspartic acid and ammonolysis of chloroacetyl l-aspartic acid diethyl ester. Secondly, the linkage of the third amino acid (Bz-Arg-OEt) to Gly-Asp-(NH₂)₂ was completed by enzymatic method under kinetic control condition. An industrial alkaline protease alcalase was used in water–organic cosolvents systems. The synthesis reaction conditions were optimized by examining the effects of several factors including water content, temperature, pH and reaction time on the yield of the synthesis product Bz-Arg-Gly-Asp(NH₂)OH. The optimum conditions are pH 8.0, 35 °C, in ethanol/Tris–HCl buffer system (85:15, v/v), 8 h with the tripeptide yield of 73.6%.     

C-terminal moiety of Tudor contains its in vivo activity in Drosophila

Background

In early Drosophila embryos, the germ plasm is localized to the posterior pole region and is partitioned into the germline progenitors, known as pole cells. Germ plasm, or pole plasm, contains the polar granules which form during oogenesis and are required for germline development. Components of these granules are also present in the perinuclear region of the nurse cells, the nuage. One such component is Tudor (Tud) which is a large protein containing multiple Tudor domains. It was previously reported that specific Tudor domains are required for germ cell formation and Tud localization.

Methodology/Principal Findings

In order to better understand the function of Tud the distribution and functional activity of fragments of Tud were analyzed. These fragments were fused to GFP and the fusion proteins were synthesized during oogenesis. Non-overlapping fragments of Tud were found to be able to localize to both the nuage and pole plasm. By introducing these fragments into a tud mutant background and testing their ability to rescue the tud phenotype, I determined that the C-terminal moiety contains the functional activity of Tud. Dividing this fragment into two parts reduces its localization in pole plasm and abolishes its activity.

Conclusions/Significance

I conclude that the C-terminal moiety of Tud contains all the information necessary for its localization in the nuage and pole plasm and its pole cell-forming activity. The present results challenge published data and may help refining the functional features of Tud.     

Structure and inhibition analysis of the mouse SAD-B C-terminal fragment

The SAD (synapses of amphids defective) kinases, including SAD-A and SAD-B, play important roles in the regulation of neuronal development, cell cycle, and energy metabolism. Our recent study of mouse SAD-A identified a unique autoinhibitory sequence (AIS), which binds at the junction of the kinase domain (KD) and the ubiquitin-associated (UBA) domain and exerts autoregulation in cooperation with UBA. Here, we report the crystal structure of the mouse SAD-B C-terminal fragment including the AIS and the kinase-associated domain 1 (KA1) at 2.8 Å resolution. The KA1 domain is structurally conserved, while the isolated AIS sequence is highly flexible and solvent-accessible. Our biochemical studies indicated that the SAD-B AIS exerts the same autoinhibitory role as that in SAD-A. We believe that the flexible isolated AIS sequence is readily available for interaction with KD-UBA and thus inhibits SAD-B activity.     

The C-terminal moiety of HIV-1 Vpr induces cell death via a caspase-independent mitochondrial pathway

Previous biochemical studies suggested that HIV-1-encoded Vpr may kill cells through an effect on the adenine nucleotide translocase (ANT), thereby causing mitochondrial membrane permeabilization (MMP). Here, we show that Vpr fails to activate caspases in conditions in which it induces cell killing. The knock-out of essential caspase-activators (Apaf-1 or caspase-9) or the knock-out of a mitochondrial caspase-independent death effector (AIF) does not abolish Vpr-mediated killing. In contrast, the cytotoxic effects of Vpr are reduced by transfection-enforced overexpression of two MMP-inhibitors, namely the endogenous protein Bcl-2 or the cytomegalovirus-encoded ANT-targeted protein vMIA. Vpr, which can elicit MMP through a direct effect on mitochondria, and HIV-1-Env, which causes MMP through an indirect pathway, exhibit additive (but not synergic) cytotoxic effects. In conclusion, it appears that Vpr induces apoptosis through a caspase-independent mitochondrial pathway.