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We describe a versatile and tuneable thiol responsive linker system using thiovinylketones, which relies on the conjugate addition–elimination mechanism of Michael acceptors for the traceless release of therapeutics. In a proof-of-principle study, we translate our findings to exhibit potent thiol-cleavable antibiotic prodrugs and antibody–drug conjugates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CK2 is a protein kinase that plays an important role in numerous cellular pathways involved in cell growth, differentiation, proliferation, and death. Consequently, upregulation of CK2 is implicated in many disease types, in particular cancer. As such, CK2 has gained significant attention as a potential therapeutic target in cancer, and over 40 chemical probes targeting CK2 have been developed in the past decade. In this review, we highlighted several chemical probes that target sites outside the conventional ATP-binding site. These chemical probes belong to different classes of molecules, from small molecules to peptides, and possess different mechanisms of action. Many of the chemical probes discussed in this review could serve as promising new candidates for drugs selectively targeting CK2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The controlled liberation of molecules from a constructed framework is a subject of profound interest across various chemical fields. It allows for the masking of a molecule's properties and precise deployment upon a single controllable release event. While numerous methodologies have been developed for amines, alcohols, and thiols, approaches for utilising amides as payload‐release handles are still in their early stages of development, despite the prevalence of amides in therapeutic compounds and materials. Herein, is presented a comprehensive strategy for the controlled and selective release of a diverse range of amides with stable linkers. The versatility of this approach is demonstrated by its successful application in the targeted release of various amide‐containing drugs in their natural form via the use of commonly used trigger motifs, such as dipeptides or glycosides. As a proof of concept, the FDA‐approved antibiotic linezolid has been successfully converted into a prodrug form and released selectively only in the presence of the trigger event. Significantly, in its prodrug state, no activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis was exhibited. Linezolid's full potential was achieved only upon controlled release, where an equipotent efficacy to the free linezolid control was demonstrated, thus emphasising the immense potential of this method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein we introduce 3-vinyl-1,2,4-triazines derivatives as dual-reactive linkers that exhibit selectivity towards cysteine and specific strained alkynes, enabling conjugate addition and inverse electron-demand Diels–Alder (IEDDA) reactions. This approach facilitates site-selective bioconjugation of biologically relevant peptides, followed by rapid and highly selective reactions with bicyclononyne (BCN) reagents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peptide stapling is a robust strategy for generating enzymatically stable, macrocyclic peptides. The incorporation of biologically relevant tags (such as cell‐penetrating motifs or fluorescent dyes) into peptides, while preserving their binding interactions and enhancing their stability, is highly sought after. Despite the unique opportunities offered by tryptophan's indole scaffold for targeted functionalisation, its utilisation in peptide stapling has been limited as compared to other amino acids. Herein, we present an approach for peptide stapling using the tryptophan‐mediated Petasis reaction. This method enables the synthesis of both stapled and labelled peptides and is applicable to both solution and solid‐phase synthesis. Importantly, the use of the Petasis reaction in combination with tryptophan facilitates the formation of stapled peptides in a straightforward, multicomponent fashion, while circumventing the formation of undesired by‐products. Furthermore, this approach allows for efficient and diverse late‐stage peptide modifications, thereby enabling rapid production of numerous conjugates for biological and medicinal applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) linker technologies exist for the synthesis of ADCs with drug-to-antibody ratios (DARs) being an even integer (typically 2, 4 or 8). However, ADCs with odd-integer DARs are significantly harder to synthesise. Here, we report the synthesis of ADCs loaded with a single warhead, using TetraDVP linkers which simultaneously re-bridge all four interchain disulfides of an IgG1 antibody. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibody–drug conjugates containing peroxide-cleavable arylboronic acid linkers are described, which target the high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cancer. The arylboronic acid linkers rapidly release a payload in the presence of hydrogen peroxide, but remain stable in plasma. Anti-HER2 and PD-L1 peroxide-cleavable ADCs exhibited potent cytotoxicity in vitro. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) typically require internalisation into cancer cells to release their cytotoxic payload. However, this places stringent constraints on therapeutic development, requiring cancer targets that have high expression of internalising antigens and efficient intracellular processing. An alternative approach is emerging whereby the payloads can be released extracellularly from cleavable linkers upon binding to poorly-internalising antigens or other tumoral components. This removes the reliance on high antigen expression, avoids potentially inefficient internalisation, and can greatly expand the range of cancer targets to components of the extracellular tumour matrix. This review gives an overview of recent developments towards non-internalising ADCs, including emerging cancer-associated cell surface and extracellular proteins, cancer stromal targeting and the linking chemistry that enables extracellular payload release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We synthesized a range of PQS (Pseudomonas quinolone signal; 2-heptyl-3-hydroxy-4(1H)-quinolone) analogues and tested them for their ability to stimulate MvfR-dependent pqsA transcription, MvfR-independent pyoverdine production, and membrane vesicle production. The structure-activity profile of the PQS analogues was different for each of these phenotypes. Certain inactive PQS analogues were also found to strongly synergize PQS-dependent pyoverdine production. doi: 10.1128/JB.00081-10

Herein we report the development of a methodology for the dual-functionalisation of IgG antibodies. This is accomplished through the combination of disulfide rebridging divinylpyrimidine technology, with bicyclononyne and methylcyclopropene handles to facilitate sequential SPAAC and IEDDA reactions. Advantageously, the strategy does not require metal catalysis and avoids the need for purification between functionalisation steps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serratia marcescens is an important cause of opportunistic human infections. Many, but not all, strains produce prodigiosin, a secondary metabolic, red-pigment antibiotic, the biosynthesis of which is directed by the pig gene cluster. Quorum sensing (QS) involves the production and detection of chemical signal molecules as a means to regulate gene expression in response to population cell density. Several strains of S. marcescens have previously been shown to possess an N-acyl-L-homoserine lactone (aHSL) QS system. This study aimed to determine the impact of introducing, by phage-mediated horizontal gene transfer, a biosynthetic gene cluster (pig) and a regulatory locus (aHSL QS) into strains lacking the respective trait. The pig cluster from S. marcescens ATCC 274 (Sma 274) was transferred to the non-pigmented strain, S. marcescens strain 12 (Sma 12). In the engineered strain, pigment was expressed and brought under the control of the recipient's native regulatory systems (aHSL QS and luxS). Moreover, transfer of the aHSL locus from Sma 12 to the non-QS Sma 274 resulted in the imposition of aHSL control onto a variety of native traits, including pigment production. In addition, during this study, the QS regulon of the clinical strain, Sma 12, was characterized, and some novel QS-regulated traits in S. marcescens were identified. The results have implications for the evolution and dissemination of biosynthetic and QS loci, illustrating the genetic modularity and ease of acquisition of these traits and the capacity of phages to act as vectors for horizontal gene transfer.

A number of bacteria, including some significant pathogens, utilize N-acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) as quorum sensing signals. There is considerable interest in the therapeutic potential of disrupting quorum sensing. Recently, a number of bacteria have been identified which are capable of enzymic inactivation of AHLs. These enzymes show considerable promise as 'quenchers' of quorum sensing. However, the assumption that the natural function of these enzymes is to disrupt or modulate quorum sensing has yet to be established. This review surveys the progress made to date in this field and examines what implications these findings have for out understanding of the role played by these enzymes in vivo.

In this work, an iterative cycle of enzymatic assays, X-ray crystallography, molecular modelling and cellular assays were used to develop a functionalisable chemical probe for the CK2a/b PPI. The lead peptide, P8C9, successfully binds to CK2a at the PPI site, is easily synthesisable and functionalisable, highly stable in serum and small enough to accommodate further optimisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development, scope and mechanism of general, efficient and atropdiastereoselective reactions leading to compounds having biaryl containing medium rings are reported. The process described outlines a pathway that will contribute to a systematic and comprehensive approach to exploring biology (chemical genetics).