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We hypothesized that an anti-METH mAb could be used in combination with a METH-conjugate vaccine (MCV) to safely improve the overall quality and magnitude of the anti-METH immune response. The benefits would include immediate onset of action (from the mAb), timely increases in the immune responses (from the combined therapy) and duration of antibody response that could last for months (from the MCV). A novel METH-like hapten (METH-SSOO9) was synthesized and then conjugated to immunocyanin monomers of Keyhole limpet hemocyanin (ICKLH) to create the MCV, ICKLH-SOO9. The vaccine, in combination with previously discovered anti-METH mAb7F9, was then tested in rats for safety and potential efficacy. The combination antibody therapy allowed safe achievement of an early high anti-METH antibody response, which persisted throughout the study. Indeed, even after four months the METH vaccine antibodies still had the capacity to significantly reduce METH brain concentrations resulting from a 0.56 mg/kg METH dose.

A number of 2-silicon substituted 1,3-dienes have been prepared by one of three routes: 1) Reactions of 1,3-dienyl Grignard reagents with silyl electrophiles or silyl Grignard reagents with 1,3-dienyl electrophiles; 2) Hydrosilylation of enynes; 3) Enyne cross metathesis. The strengths and limitations of each preparative method are discussed.

Nicotine conjugate vaccine efficacy is limited by the concentration of nicotine-specific antibodies that can be reliably generated in serum. Previous studies suggest that the concurrent use of 2 structurally distinct nicotine immunogens in rats can generate additive antibody responses by stimulating distinct B cell populations. In the current study we investigated whether it is possible to identify a third immunologically distinct nicotine immunogen. The new 1′-SNic immunogen (2S)-N,N′-(disulfanediyldiethane-2,1-diyl)bis[4-(2-pyridin-3-ylpyrrolidin-1-yl)butanamide] conjugated to keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) differed from the existing immunogens 3′-AmNic–rEPA and 6-CMUNic–BSA in linker position, linker composition, conjugation chemistry, and carrier protein. Vaccination of rats with 1′-SNic–KLH elicited high concentrations of high affinity nicotine-specific antibodies. The antibodies produced in response to 1′-SNic–KLH did not appreciably cross-react in ELISA with either 3′-AmNic–rEPA or 6-CMUNic–BSA or vice versa, showing that the B cell populations activated by each of these nicotine immunogens were non-overlapping and distinct. Nicotine retention in serum was increased and nicotine distribution to brain substantially reduced in rats vaccinated with 1′-SNic–KLH compared to controls. Effects of 1′-SNic–KLH on nicotine distribution were comparable to those of 3′-AmNic–rEPA which has progressed to late stage clinical trials as an adjunct to smoking cessation. These data show that it is possible to design multiple immunogens from a small molecule such as nicotine which elicit independent immune responses. This approach could be applicable to other addiction vaccines or small molecule targets as well.

A number of enynyloxy dimethyl and diisopropyl silanes have been prepared and converted into siloxacyclopentene containing 1,3-dienes via intramolecular hydrosilylation of the alkyne functional group. Diels–Alder reactions of these dienes are reported.

1,3-Dien-2-yl(Rpyr)bis(dimethylglyoximato) cobalt(III) complexes (R = H, NMe2) have been shown to participate in cycloaddition reactions with a variety of tropones. In general, tropones that do not contain electron-withdrawing substituents react with dienyl complexes via [6 + 4] cycloaddition and tropones that are substituted with at least one additional electron-withdrawing group react via [4 + 2] cycloaddition. Both types of metal-substituted cycloadducts ([6 + 4] and [4 + 2]) presented here have also been characterized by X-ray crystallography.

This study reports the synthesis of the mercapto-hapten (S)-N-(2-(mercaptoethyl)-6-(3-(2-(methylamino)propyl)phenoxy)hexanamide [3, (+)-METH HSMO9] and its use to prepare METH-conjugated vaccines (MCV) from maleimide-activated proteins. MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis of the MCV synthesized using 3 showed there was a high and controllable epitope density on two different carrier proteins. In addition, the MCV produced a substantially greater immunological response in mice than previous METH haptens, and a monoclonal antibody generated from this MCV in mice showed a very high affinity for (+)-METH (K(D) = 6.8 nM). The efficient covalent coupling of (+)-METH HSMO9 to the activated carrier proteins suggests that this approach could be cost-effective for large-scale production of MCV. In addition, the general methods described for the synthesis of (+)-METH HSMO9 (3) and its use to synthesize MCV will be applicable for conjugated vaccines of small molecules and other substances of abuse such as morphine, nicotine, and cocaine.

In addition to addiction, the repeated use of (+)-methamphetamine [(+)-METH], (+)-amphetamine [(+)-AMP], or (+/-)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine ((+/-)-MDMA, commonly called ecstasy) can lead to life-threatening medical problems including cardiovascular injury, severe depression, and psychosis. Currently, there are no specific pharmacotherapies to treat these medical problems. In this study, we report the design and synthesis of two haptens, (S)-(+)-3-(9-carboxynonyloxy)methamphetamine (3a, (+)-METH MO10) and (S)-(+)-3-(5-carboxypentyloxy)methamphetamine (3b, (+)-METH MO6), and their use in generating high affinity (low K(D) value) monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against (+)-METH, (+)-AMP, and/or (+)-MDMA. On the basis of results from the determination of mAb K(D) values and ligand specificity, the mAbs generated from hapten 3a showed the greatest promise for generating active and passive immunotherapies for treating overdose or addiction from (+)-METH-like stimulants.

2-Triethoxysilyl-substituted 1,3-butadiene has been prepared in 30-g quantities from chloroprene via a simple synthetic procedure. Silatrane- and catechol-substituted analogues of this main group element substituted diene were then prepared on a 10-g scale by ligand exchange and characterized by X-ray crystallography in addition to standard spectroscopic techniques. 2-Dimethylphenylsilyl-1,3-butadiene has also been prepared from chloroprene on an 8-g scale. Diels-Alder reactions of these dienes are reported as well as subsequent TBAF-assisted/Pd-catalyzed Hiyama cross-coupling reactions of those Diels-Alder adducts. Silicon-substituted cycloadducts and cross-coupled products were also characterized by NMR spectroscopy and, in two cases, by X-ray crystallography.

A number of enynyloxy dimethyl and diisopropyl silanes have been prepared and converted into siloxacyclopentene containing 1,3-dienes via intramolecular hydrosilylation of the alkyne functional group. Diels–Alder reactions of these dienes are reported.

[reaction: see text] 2-Triethylsiloxy-substituted 1,3-butadiene has been prepared in gram quantities from chloroprene via a simple synthetic procedure. Silatrane and catechol-substituted analogues of this main group element substituted diene were prepared by ligand exchange and characterized by X-ray crystallography in addition to standard spectroscopic techniques. Diels-Alder reactions of these dienes are reported as well as subsequent TBAF assisted/Pd-catalyzed Hiyama cross-coupling reactions of those Diels-Alder adducts.