Synthesis and gastroprotective activity of 4H-pyrido[1,2-a]pyrimidin-4-ones.

The cytoprotective effect of different types of 4h-pyrido[1,2-a]pyrimidin-4-one derivatives was investigated. Short synthesis of the investigated compounds was depicted. The gastroprotective effect was determined against acidified ethanol induced mucosal lesions in rats. The most effective compounds belong to unsaturated 4-oxo-4h-pyrido[1,2-a]pyrimidine-3-carboxamide derivatives, and the most active one contains a methyl group in position 6 and a cyclopentyl group on the nitrogen of the carboxamide group. Further pharmacological, biochemical and clinical studies may justify, that the representative of this type of compounds may be useful as prophylactic agents against gastric damage caused by non-steroidal antiinflammatory agents.     

Temporal variability in a system of coupled mitotic timers

 Cell proliferation is considered a periodic process governed by a relaxation timer. The collective behavior of a system composed of three identical relaxation oscillators in numerically studied under the condition that diffusion of the slow mode dominates. We demonstrate: (1) the existence of three periodic regimes with different periods and phase relations and an unsymmetrical, stable steady-state (USSS); (2) the coexistence of in-phase oscillations and USSS; (3) the coexistence of periodic attractors; and (4) the emergence of a two-loop limit cycle coexisting with both in-phase oscillations and a stable steady-state. The qualitative reasons for such a diversitiy and its possible role in the generation of cell cycle variability are discussed. Received: 18 March 1992/Accepted in revised form: 16 April 1994     

Nucleolin promotes secondary structure in ribosomal RNA

The effect of nucleolin on the secondary structure of RNA was studied using circular dichroism (CD). Nucleolin caused decreases in the main positive bands and shifts to higher wavelengths in the CD spectra of synthetic polynucleotides such as poly(G) and poly(A) indicating helix destabilizing activity. In contrast, nucleolin effected increases in signal and shifts to lower wavelengths of the peaks of CD spectra of ribosomal RNA, suggesting enhancement of secondary structure. Another major nucleolar RNA binding protein, B23, had helix destabilizing activity but did not enhance RNA secondary structure. It is proposed that nucleolin promotes formation of secondary structure in preribosomal RNA during the early stages of ribosome biogenesis.     

Simplified absolute metabolite quantification by gas chromatography-isotope dilution mass spectrometry on the basis of commercially available source material

In the field of metabolomics, GC-MS has rather established itself as a tool for semi-quantitative strategies like metabolic fingerprinting or metabolic profiling. Absolute quantification of intra- or extracellular metabolites is nowadays mostly accomplished by application of diverse LC-MS techniques. Only few groups have so far adopted GC-MS technology for this exceptionally challenging task. Besides numerous and deeply investigated problems related to sample generation, the pronounced matrix effects in biological samples have led to the almost mandatory application of isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS) for the accurate determination of absolute metabolite concentrations. Nevertheless, access to stable isotope labeled internal standards (ILIS), which are in many cases commercially unavailable, is quite laborious and very expensive. Here we present an improved and simplified gas chromatography-isotope dilution mass spectrometry (GC-IDMS) protocol for the absolute determination of intra- and extracellular metabolite levels. Commercially available (13)C-labeled algal cells were used as a convenient source for the preparation of internal standards. Advantages as well as limitations of the described method are discussed.     

Factors Affecting the Tailing of Blunt End DNA with Fluorescent Pyrimidine dNTPs

The transferase activity of non-proofreading DNA polymerases is a well-known phenomenon that has been utilized in cloning and sequencing applications. The non-templated addition of modified nucleotides at DNA blunt ends is a potentially useful feature of DNA polymerases that can be used for selective transformation of DNA 3′ ends. In this paper, we characterized the tailing reaction at perfectly matched and mismatched duplex ends with Cy3- and Cy5-modified pyrimidine nucleotides. It was shown that the best DNA tailing substrate does not have a perfect Watson–Crick base pair at the end. Mismatched duplexes with a 3′ dC were the most efficient in the Taq DNA polymerase-catalysed tailing reaction with a Cy5-modified dUTP. We further demonstrated that the arrangement of the dye residue relative to the nucleobase notably affects the outcome of the tailing reaction. A comparative study of labelled deoxycytidine and deoxyuridine nucleotides showed higher efficiency for dUTP derivatives. The non-templated addition of modified nucleotides by Taq polymerase at a duplex blunt end was generally complicated by the pyrophosphorolysis and 5′ exonuclease activity of the enzyme.     

Reagents For The Selective Immobilization Of Oligonucleotides On Solid Supports

New reagents (CPGs and phosphoramidites) for automatic solid phase synthesis of modified oligonucleotides were designed. Three oligonucleotides carrying fluorescent label at the 5′-terminus and an anchor group at the 3′-terminus were prepared and their immobilization in orthogonal conditions on solid supports was studied.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel pyrido[2,3-b]pyrazines inhibiting both erlotinib-sensitive and erlotinib-resistant cell lines

A series of novel pyrido[2,3-b]pyrazines were synthesized as potential antitumor agents for erlotinib-resistant tumors. Known signal inhibitor compounds from our Nested Chemical Library were tested in phenotypic assays on erlotinib-sensitive PC9 and erlotinib-resistant PC9-ER cell lines to find a compound class to be active on erlotinib resistant cell lines. Based on the screening data, novel pyrido[2,3-b]pyrazines were designed and synthesized. The effect of the substituent position of the heteroaromatic moiety in position 7 and the importance of unsubstituted position 2 of the pyridopyrazine core were explored. Compound 7n had an IC₅₀ value of 0.09 μM for the inhibition of PC9 and 0.15 μM for the inhibition of PC9-ER. We found that some lead compounds of these structures overcome erlotinib-resistance which might become promising drug candidates to fight against NSCLC with EGFR T790M mutation. The signaling network(s) involved in the mechanism(s) of action of these novel compounds in overcoming erlotinib resistance remain to be elucidated.     

Transmigration characteristics of breast cancer and melanoma cells through the brain endothelium: Role of Rac and PI3K

Brain metastases are common and devastating complications of both breast cancer and melanoma. Although mammary carcinoma brain metastases are more frequent than those originating from melanoma, this latter has the highest tropism to the brain. Using static and dynamic in vitro approaches, here we show that melanoma cells have increased adhesion to the brain endothelium in comparison to breast cancer cells. Moreover, melanoma cells can transmigrate more rapidly and in a higher number through brain endothelial monolayers than breast cancer cells. In addition, melanoma cells have increased ability to impair tight junctions of cerebral endothelial cells. We also show that inhibition of Rac or PI3K impedes adhesion of breast cancer cells and melanoma cells to the brain endothelium. In addition, inhibition of Rac or PI3K inhibits the late phase of transmigration of breast cancer cells and the early phase of transmigration of melanoma cells. On the other hand, the Rac inhibitor EHT1864 impairs the junctional integrity of the brain endothelium, while the PI3K inhibitor LY294002 has no damaging effect on interendothelial junctions. We suggest that targeting the PI3K/Akt pathway may represent a novel opportunity in preventing the formation of brain metastases of melanoma and breast cancer.