Search

The innovative design of a triarylborane (TB)-dye with one NMe 2 -alkylated (propargylated) group and one NMe 2 group yielded a system that is both an NMe 2 π-donor and an inductive NMe 2 -alkyl cationic acceptor. Consequently, the new TB-dye was highly sensitive to a "click" reaction with an azide-substituted lysine side chain (yielding TB-lysine), resulting in a bathochromic shift of emission of 100 nm. In addition, fluorene attached to the lysine C-terminus showed FRET with the TB-chromophore, also sensitive to interactions with targets. Both the TB-dye and TB-lysine showed high affinities towards both DNA and proteins, reporting binding by an opposite fluorimetric response for DNA/RNA (quenching) vs. BSA (increase). Thus, the novel TB-dye is an ideal fluorimetric probe for orthogonal incorporation into bio-targets by "click" reactions due to fluorescence reporting of the progress of the "click" reaction and further sensing of the binding site composition. The TB-dye is moderately toxic to human cell lines after 2-3 days of exposure, but efficiently enters cells in 90 min, being non-toxic at short exposure. The most important product of the "click" reaction, TB-lysine, was non-toxic to cells and showed equal distribution between mitochondria and lysosomes. Further studies would focus particularly on the very convenient monitoring of the progress of "click" conjugation of the TB-dye with biorelevant targets inside living cells by confocal microscopy.

We recently reported diethynylarene-linked bis(triarylborane) tetracations which show remarkable fluorimetric and Raman-SERS sensing of DNA/RNA. In the current study, we show that they exhibit promising photodynamic therapy (PDT)-based biological activity on human cell lines and adenovirus type 5 (HAdV5), acting as theranostic agents. All compounds efficiently enter living cells showing negligible antiproliferative activity. Bis-thiophene- and anthracene- analogues bind non-covalently to HAdV5 virus with high affinity, the anthracene-analogue itself causing a moderate antiviral effect, i.e., decreased ability of the virus to infect human cells. Irradiation of bis-thiophene- and anthracene- analogues with visible light (400-700 nm) caused a very rapid (within 1 min) and strong increase in cytotoxicity, as well as an order of magnitude increase in antiviral activity, attributed to the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Photochemical studies of the compounds revealed that, upon irradiation, they produce singlet oxygen, which correlates with the observed light-induced bioactivity., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Three novel tetracationic bis-triarylboranes with 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) linkers, and their neutral precursors, showed significant red-shifted absorption and emission compared to their thiophene-containing analogues, with one of the EDOT-derivatives emitting in the NIR region. Only the EDOT-linked trixylylborane tetracation was stable in aqueous solution, indicating that direct attachment of a thiophene or even 3-methylthiophene to the boron atom is insufficient to provide hydrolytic stability in aqueous solution. Further comparative analysis of the EDOT-linked trixylylborane tetracation and its bis-thiophene analogue revealed efficient photo-induced singlet oxygen production, with the consequent biological implications. Thus, both analogues bind strongly to ds-DNA and BSA, very efficiently enter living human cells, accumulate in several different cytoplasmic organelles with no toxic effect but, under intense visible light irradiation, they exhibit almost instantaneous and very strong cytotoxic effects, presumably attributed to singlet oxygen production. Thus, both compounds are intriguing theranostic agents, whose intracellular and probably intra-tissue location can be monitored by strong fluorescence, allowing switching on of the strong bioactivity by well-focused visible light., (© 2022 The Authors. Chemistry - A European Journal published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

A series of bis-(4'-pyridylethynyl)arenes (arene=benzene, tetrafluorobenzene, and anthracene) were synthesized and their bis-N-methylpyridinium compounds were investigated as a class of π-extended methyl viologens. Their structures were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction, and their photophysical and electrochemical properties (cyclic voltammetry), as well as their interactions with DNA/RNA were investigated. The dications showed bathochromic shifts in emission compared to the neutral compounds. The neutral compounds showed very small Stokes shifts, which are a little larger for the dications. All of the compounds showed very short fluorescence lifetimes (<4 ns). The neutral compound with an anthracene core has a quantum yield of almost unity. With stronger acceptors, the analogous bis-N-methylpyridinium compound showed a larger two-photon absorption cross-section than its neutral precursor. All of the dicationic compounds interact with DNA/RNA; while the compounds with benzene and tetrafluorobenzene cores bind in the grooves, the one with an anthracene core intercalates as a consequence of its large, condensed aromatic linker moiety, and it aggregates within the polynucleotide when in excess over DNA/RNA. Moreover, all cationic compounds showed highly specific CD spectra upon binding to ds-DNA/RNA, attributed to the rare case of forcing the planar, achiral molecule into a chiral rotamer, and negligible toxicity toward human cell lines at ≤10 μM concentrations. The anthracene-analogue exhibited intracellular accumulation within lysosomes, preventing its interaction with cellular DNA/RNA. However, cytotoxicity was evident at 1 μM concentration upon exposure to light, due to singlet oxygen generation within cells. These multi-faceted features, in combination with its two-photon absorption properties, suggest it to be a promising lead compound for development of novel light-activated theranostic agents., (© 2022 The Authors. Chemistry - A European Journal published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Boric acid (BA) has been used as a transparent glass matrix for optical materials for over 100 years. However, recently, apparent room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) from BA (crystalline and powder states) was reported (Zheng et al., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2021, 60, 9500) when irradiated at 280 nm under ambient conditions. We suspected that RTP from their BA sample was induced by an unidentified impurity. Our experimental results show that pure BA synthesized from B(OMe) 3 does not luminesce in the solid state when irradiated at 250-400 nm, while commercial BA indeed (faintly) luminesces. Our theoretical calculations show that neither individual BA molecules nor aggregates would absorb light at >175 nm, and we observe no absorption of solid pure BA experimentally at >200 nm. Therefore, it is not possible for pure BA to be excited at >250 nm even in the solid state. Thus, pure BA does not display RTP, whereas trace impurities can induce RTP., (© 2022 The Authors. Angewandte Chemie International Edition published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Chiral organoboronates have played a critical role in organic chemistry and in the development of materials science and pharmaceuticals. Much effort has been devoted to exploring synthetic methodologies for the preparation of these compounds during the past few decades. Among the known methods, asymmetric catalysis has emerged as a practical and highly efficient strategy for their straightforward preparation, and recent years have witnessed remarkable advances in this respect. Approaches such as asymmetric borylative addition, asymmetric allylic borylation and stereospecific cross-coupling borylation, have been extensively explored and well established employing transition-metal catalysis with a chiral ligand. This review provides a comprehensive overview of transition metal-catalysed asymmetric borylation processes to construct carbon-boron, carbon-carbon, and other carbon-heteroatom bonds. It summarises a range of recent achievements in this area of research, with considerable attention devoted to the reaction modes and the mechanisms involved.

The synthesis, photophysical, and electrochemical properties of selectively mono-, bis- and tris-dimethylamino- and trimethylammonium-substituted bis-triarylborane bithiophene chromophores are presented along with the water solubility and singlet oxygen sensitizing efficiency of the cationic compounds Cat 1+ , Cat 2+ , Cat(i) 2+ , and Cat 3+ . Comparison with the mono-triarylboranes reveals the large influence of the bridging unit on the properties of the bis-triarylboranes, especially those of the cationic compounds. Based on these preliminary investigations, the interactions of Cat 1+ , Cat 2+ , Cat(i) 2+ , and Cat 3+ with DNA, RNA, and DNApore were investigated in buffered solutions. The same compounds were investigated for their ability to enter and localize within organelles of human lung carcinoma (A549) and normal lung (WI38) cells showing that not only the number of charges but also their distribution over the chromophore influences interactions and staining properties., (© 2021 The Authors. Chemistry - A European Journal published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

A novel and convenient methodology for the one-pot synthesis of sterically congested triarylboranes by using bench-stable aryltrifluoroborates as the boron source is reported. This procedure gives systematic access to symmetrically and unsymmetrically substituted triarylboranes of the types BAr 2 Ar' and BArAr'Ar'', respectively. Three unsymmetrically substituted triarylboranes as well as their iridium-catalyzed C-H borylation products are reported. These borylated triarylboranes contain one to three positions that can subsequently be orthogonally functionalized in follow-up reactions, such as Suzuki-Miyaura cross-couplings or Sonogashira couplings., (© 2021 The Authors. Chemistry - A European Journal published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

In recent years, research in the fields of optoelectronics, anion sensors and bioimaging agents have been greatly influenced by novel compounds containing triarylborane motifs. Such compounds possess an empty p-orbital at boron which results in useful optical and electronic properties. Such a diversity of applications was not expected when the first triarylborane was reported in 1885. Synthetic approaches to triarylboranes underwent various changes over the following century, some of which are still used in the present day, such as the generally applicable routes developed by Krause et al. in 1922, or by Grisdale et al. in 1972 at Eastman Kodak. Some other developments were not pursued further after their initial reports, such as the synthesis of two triarylboranes bearing three different aromatic groups by Mikhailov et al. in 1958. This review summarizes the development of synthetic approaches to triarylboranes from their first report nearly 135 years ago to the present., (© 2021 The Authors. Chemistry - A European Journal published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

We report four new luminescent tetracationic bis-triarylborane DNA and RNA sensors that show high binding affinities, in several cases even in the nanomolar range. Three of the compounds contain substituted, highly emissive and structurally flexible bis(2,6-dimethylphenyl-4-ethynyl)arene linkers (3: arene=5,5'-2,2'-bithiophene; 4: arene=1,4-benzene; 5: arene=9,10-anthracene) between the two boryl moieties and serve as efficient dual Raman and fluorescence chromophores. The shorter analogue 6 employs 9,10-anthracene as the linker and demonstrates the importance of an adequate linker length with a certain level of flexibility by exhibiting generally lower binding affinities than 3-5. Pronounced aggregation-deaggregation processes are observed in fluorimetric titration experiments with DNA for compounds 3 and 5. Molecular modelling of complexes of 5 with AT-DNA, suggest the minor groove as the dominant binding site for monomeric 5, but demonstrate that dimers of 5 can also be accommodated. Strong SERS responses for 3-5 versus a very weak response for 6, particularly the strong signals from anthracene itself observed for 5 but not for 6, demonstrate the importance of triple bonds for strong Raman activity in molecules of this compound class. The energy of the characteristic stretching vibration of the C≡C bonds is significantly dependent on the aromatic moiety between the triple bonds. The insertion of aromatic moieties between two C≡C bonds thus offers an alternative design for dual Raman and fluorescence chromophores, applicable in multiplex biological Raman imaging., (© 2021 The Authors. Chemistry - A European Journal published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

A bis-triarylborane tetracation (4-Ar 2 B-3,5-Me 2 C 6 H 2 )-C≡C-C≡C-(3,5-Me 2 C 6 H 2 -4-BAr 2 [Ar=(2,6-Me 2 -4-NMe 3 -C 6 H 2 ) + ] (2 4+ ) shows distinctly different behaviour in its fluorimetric response than that of our recently published bis-triarylborane 5-(4-Ar 2 B-3,5-Me 2 C 6 H 2 )-2,2'-(C 4 H 2 S) 2 -5'-(3,5-Me 2 C 6 H 2 -4-BAr 2 ) (3 4+ ). Single-crystal X-ray diffraction data on the neutral bis-triarylborane precursor 2 N confirm its rod-like dumbbell structure, which is shown to be important for DNA/RNA targeting and also for BSA protein binding. Fluorimetric titrations with DNA/RNA/BSA revealed the very strong affinity of 2 4+ and indicated the importance of the properties of the linker connecting the two triarylboranes. Using the butadiyne rather than a bithiophene linker resulted in an opposite emission effect (quenching vs. enhancement), and 2 4+ bound to BSA 100 times stronger than 3 4+ . Moreover, 2 4+ interacted strongly with ss-RNA, and circular dichroism (CD) results suggest ss-RNA chain-wrapping around the rod-like bis-triarylborane dumbbell structure like a thread around a spindle, a very unusual mode of binding of ss-RNA with small molecules. Furthermore, 2 4+ yielded strong Raman/SERS signals, allowing DNA or protein detection at ca. 10 nm concentrations. The above observations, combined with low cytotoxicity, efficient human cell uptake and organelle-selective accumulation make such compounds intriguing novel lead structures for bio-oriented, dual fluorescence/Raman-based applications., (© 2020 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.)

The stability of tetracationic triarylboranes in dilute aqueous solution was investigated by tuning the steric demand of the linker in a (para-(N,N,N-trimethylammonio)xylyl) 2 B-(linker)-B(para-(N,N,N-trimethylammonio)xylyl) 2 structure. With increasing steric bulk of the linker, namely 1,4-phenylene, 2,2'''-(3,3'''-dimethyl)-5,2':5',2'':5'',5'''-quaterthiophene, 9,10-anthracenylene, and 4,4'''-(5'-(3,5-dimethylphenyl))(5''-(3''',5'''-dimethylphenyl))-2',2''-bithiophene, the stability of the compounds increased. The anthracene-based chromophore, compound 3M is water-stable for at least 48 h, is nontoxic to cells and exhibits an exceedingly high fluorescence quantum yield of 0.86 in water making it an ideal candidate for confocal live-cell imaging of lysosomes., (© 2019 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Five analogs of oxytocin have been synthesized with a homocysteine residue in position 6 and 2-, 3-, or 4-carbon residues in position 1. The compounds, which contain 20-, 21-, and 22-membered disulfide rings, respectively, were [1-alpha-mercaptoacetic acid,6-homocysteine]oxytocin, [6-homocysteine]oxytocin, [1-beta-mercaptopropionic acid,6-homocysteine]oxytocin, [1,6-homocystine]oxytocin, and [1-gamma-mercaptobutyric acid,6-homocysteine]oxytocin. The appropriate protected polypeptide intermediates were prepared by the solid-phase method of peptide synthesis. The protecting groups were removed by treatment with Na in NH3 and the disulfide bond was formed by oxidation with ICH2CH2I in aqueous MeOH. Purification was effected by partition chromatography followed by gel filtration. The pharmacological activities of all five analogs are reported for the oxytocic, avian vasodepressor, and rat pressor assays. Compared to oxytocin, these analogs exhibited sharply reduced agonist potencies, and several exhibited antagonist acitivty.

[4-Phenylalanine]oxytocin was prepared from Z-Cys(Bzl)-Tyr(Bzl)-Ile-Phe-Asn-Cys(Bzl)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NG2 (4) by deprotection with Na in NH3 followed by cyclization of the resulting disulfhydryl compound with ICH2CH2I. The protected peptide 4 was prepared from Boc-Asn-Cys(Bzl)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2 by the stepwise solution method. Coupling was effected by a modification of the dicyclohexylcarbodiimide-1-hydroxybenzotriazole preactivation method wherein the precipitate of dicyclohexylurea is removed by filtration prior to mixing of the amino and carboxyl components. The analog was found to be an effective inhibitor of the antidiuretic (ADH) response to exogenous arginine-vasopressin. It produced marked diuresis in the anti-ADH assay at approximately the same dose level as does [Leu4]oxytocin but, in contrast to [Leu4]oxytocin, showed natriuretic activity only at relatively high dose levels. In addition, [Phe4]oxytocin exhibited 0.15% of the oxytocic potency of oxytocin, weak antiavian vasodepressor activity (pA2 = 6.93), and no measurable rat pressor activity.

[1-Beta-mercapto-beta,beta-pentamethylenepropionic acid]oxytocin was prepared from beta-Mpa(beta-(CH2)5)(Bzl)-Tyr(Bzl)-Ile-Gln-Asn-Cys(Bzl)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2 by removal of the Bzl-protecting groups with Na-NH3 followed by cyclization of the resulting disulfhydryl compound with K3Fe(CN)6.The analog was purified by desalting on Sephadex G-15 in 50% HOAc and gel filtration on Sephadex G-25 and LH-20. The protected intermediate above was synthesized from Z-Cys(Bzl)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2 by the stepwose p-nitrophenyl ester method using Nalpha-Boc protection at the penta-, hexa-, and octapeptide stages. The analog was found to be a potent inhibitor of the oxytocic and avian vasodepressor effects of oxytocin (pA2 values of 7.43 and 8.30, respectively) but was only a weak inhibitor of the rat pressor effect of 8-lysine-vasopressin. The rat antipressor potency of [1-deaminopenicillamine]oxytocin was also determined in this study: pA2 = 6.27. Of the alkyl-substituted 1-position analogs of oxytocin studied so far, [1-beta-mercapto-beta,beta-pentamethylenepropionic acid]oxytocin is the most potent antioxytocic agent.

[7-Thiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid)]oxytocin and [1-beta-mercaptopropionic acid,7-(thiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid)]oxytocin have been synthesized by a solid-phase method. Alpha-N-tert-Butoxycarbonyl- and S-ethylcarbamoyl-protecting groups were employed. The dipeptide Boc-Cys(Ec)-thiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid as well as individual residues was coupled to a H-Gly-dehydroalanine-resin with dicyclohexylcarbodiimide in the presence of 1-hydroxybenzotriazole. The appropriate protected polypeptide intermediates were cleaved from the resin by acidolysis, deprotected in NH3, and oxidized to the cyclic disulfide analogues with ICH2CH2I. Purification was effected by partition chromatography and gel filtration. Relative to oxytocin and [1-beta-mercaptopropionic acid]oxytocin, these analogues exhibit greatly enhanced oxytocic and avian vasodepressor potencies and unchanged rat pressor potencies.

The synthesis of the protected polypeptide precursor of [1-beta-mercapto-beta,beta-diethylpropionic acid,2-(3,5-dibromo-L-tyrosine)]oxytocin was performed in a stepwise manner by solution techniques. This analog of oxytocin has two modifications, each of which taken alone gives analogs which inhibit some of the pharmacological responses to oxytocin. The S-ethylcarbamoyl protecting groups of beta-Mpa(beta-Et2)(Ec)-Dbt-Ile-Gln-Asn-Cys(Ec)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2 were removed in refluxing liquid NH3, and the resulting disulfhydryl compound was oxidatively cyclized in H2O-MeOH with ICH2CH2I. Purification was effected by partition chromatography and gel filtration. The analog possesses antioxytocic (pA2 = 7.08) and antiavian vasodepressor (pA2 = 7.38) activities but has neither agonist nor antagonist activity in the rat pressor assay. These potencies are close to those exhibited by [1-beta-mercaptopropionic acid,2-(3,5-dibromo-L-tyrosine)]oxytocin but different from those of [1-beta-mercapto-beta,beta-diethylpropionic acid]oxytocin.

For the synthesis of [1-L-penicillamine,4-L-leucine]oxytocin (2), Z-Tyr(Bzl)-Ile-Leu-Asn-Cys(Bzl)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2 was treated with anhydrous HBr, and the resulting partially deprotected octapeptide was coupled with Z-penicillamine(Bzl) in a condensation reaction mediated by dicyclohexylcarbodiimide and 1-hydroxybenzotriazole. The protected nonapeptide Z-penicillamine(Bzl)-Tyr-Ile-Leu-Asn-Cys(Bzl)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2 was treated with Na in NH3 and the resulting disulfhydryl compound was subjected to oxidative cyclization in H2O-CH3OH with ICH2CH2I, Purification of 2 was effected by partition chromatography and gel filtration. The analog possesses antioxytocic and antiavian vasodepressor pA2 values of 6.77 and 7.21, respectively, and has no antipressor or anti-ADH activity. Its biological activity spectrum is qualitatively identical with that of [1-penicillamine]oxytocin. In contrast to the marked natriuretic-diuretic and anti-antidiuretic activity of [Leu4]oxytocin, 2 exhibits none of these effects on the rat kidney.

[1-Beta-Mercaptopropionic acid,2-(3,5-dibromo-L-tyrosine)]oxytocin was synthesized from a protected polypeptide intermediate that had been prepared by the condensation of S-ethylcarbamoyl-beta-mercaptopropionyl-3,5-dibromotyrosine with H-Ile-Gln-Asn-Cys(Ec)-Pro-Leu-Gly-NH2, using dicyclohexylcarbodiimide in dimethylformamide. The ethylcarbamoyl (Ec) protecting groups were removed by refluxing NH3, and the resulting disulfhydryl peptide was oxidatively cyclized to the corresponding disulfide by ICH2CH2I. Purification of the analog was effected by partition chromatography and gel filtration. The analog possesses antioxytocic (pA2 = 7.05) and antiavian vasodepressor (pA2 = 7.44) activities but has neither agonist nor antagonist activity in the rat pressor assay.

[3-beta-(2-Thienyl)-L-alanine]-8-lysine-vasopressin was synthesized by solution techniques. The partially protected heptapeptide Boc-Cys(Ec)-Tyr-Thi-Gln-Asn-Cys(Ec)-Pro (1) was synthesized in a stepwise manner using the active ester method or the dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC) coupling technique mediated by 1-hydroxybenzotriazole (HBt). The protected nonapeptide amide Boc-Cys(Ec)-Tyr-Thi-Gin-Asn-Cys(Ec)-Pro-Lys(Coc)-Gly-NH2 (2) was prepared by coupling 1 with Lys(Coc)-Gly-NH2 using DCC-HBt. From 2, [3-thienylalanine]-8-lysine-vasopressin was obtained by removing the Boc-protecting groups with trifluoroacetic acid and ethylcarbamoyl (Ec) protecting groups in refluxing liquid NH3 followed by oxidative cyclization in H2O-MeOH using ICH2CH2I. Purification was effected by partition chromatography followed by gel filtration. The highly purified product possesses activities in the oxytocic, avian vasodepressor, rat pressor, and antidiuretic assays of 19.0 +/- 0.5, 87 +/- 4, 243 +/- 5, and 332 +/- 32 units/mg, respectively. Thus [3-thienylalanine]-8-lysine-vasopressin has higher oxytocic, avian vasodepressor, and antidiuretic potencies than does 8-lysine-vasopressin, whereas its pressor potency is about the same as or slightly lower than that of 8-lysine-vasopressin.