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Separation and sequencing of the sequence isomers of pyrimidine deoxypentanucleoside tetraphosphates by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Chemical synthesis of DNA fragments with a defined sequence is extremely long and complex. A simpler alternative is isolation of fragments from partially hydrolysed DNA. Mixtures of sequence isomers of pyrimidine oligonucleotides were recently isolated on a preparative scale from hydrolysates of depurinated herring sperm DNA. These, however, could not be further separated by conventional techniques. Using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), sequence isomers of pyrimidine di-, tri- and tetranucleotides were successfully separated and sequenced. In the present work, separation and sequencing of sequence isomers of pyrimidine pentanucleotides by HPLC was achieved, demonstrating the applicability of this particular approach in preparation of desired DNA fragments.

Animals↗

Separation of pyrimidine deoxyribooligonucleotides according to length and composition using thin-layer chromatography on deae-cellulose.

A procedure has been developed for the fractionation of pyrimidine deoxyribo-oligonucleotides, PynPn+1, according to length and composition using ascending thin-layer chromatography on DEAE-cellulose. The separation of oligonucleotides according to length (n=1-7) into individual isopliths was carried out using a linear 0-0.35 M sodium chloride gradient in 0.01 M sodium acetate buffer of pH 5.1-5.3 and 5 M urea. Then the oligonucleotides of individual isopliths were separated according to composition using the same gradient of sodium chloride in 0.01 M sodium acetate or sodium citrate buffer of pH 3.2. The procedure can be used for rapid fractionation (2-3 h) and serial determination of the frequencies of pyrimidine sequences differing in length and composition in DNAs of various origin. The procedure can be used for both preparative and analytical applications. It was employed to study the distribution of 5-methylcytosine in pyrimidine isopliths of some DNAs.

Animals↗

Design of leader sequences that improve the efficiency of the enzymatic synthesis of 2'-amino-pyrimidine RNA for in vitro selection.

The application of nucleic acids obtained by in vitro selection from a large pool of molecules with random sequences in medical diagnosis or therapy requires nucleic acids with enhanced stability in biological fluids. Chemical modifications introduced after selection are likely to alter the structure and the properties of the selected molecules. Therefore, the chemical modifications used must be present throughout the selection. This can be achieved for example by the incorporation of 2'-amino-pyrimidine nucleotides into RNA in the transcription step. Though modified molecules could be transcribed from some generally designed dsDNA templates, the efficiency of transcription and reverse transcription and reverse transcription was very low making this strategy too inefficient. Templates and primers with varying amounts of pyrimidines in the constant flanking region of the RNA molecule were designed and their efficiency in transcription and reverse transcription tested. The obtained 2'-amino-pyrimidine RNA molecules showed enhanced stability in serum and RNAse cocktails. Here we present optimized leader sequences flanking the random core-sequence and reaction conditions that allow the reliable utilization of this modification in in vitro selection.

Base Sequence↗

Cleavage effect of oligoribonucleotides substituted at the cleavage sites with modified pyrimidine- and purine-nucleosides.

The precursor of an RNA molecule from T4-infected E. coli cells (p2Spl RNA) has the capacity to cleave itself at specific positions [UpA (139-140) and CpA (170-171)], within a putative loop and stem structure. This sequence-specific cleavage requires at least a monovalent cation and non-ionic detergents. In order to determine the influence of the pyrimidine and purine bases on these sequence-specific cleavage reactions, we studied the cleavage reactions of hairpin loop RNAs substituted at the cleavage sites with modified pyrimidine- and purine-nucleosides. The cleavage was affected by the 2'-hydroxyl groups and the bases of the pyrimidines, and the 6-amino group of the purine.

Base Composition↗

Selective regulatory effects of purine and pyrimidine nucleotides on vacuolar transport of amino acids.

The release of amino acids from their vacuolar store was studied in situ, i.e. in cells with selectively permeabilized plasma membrane and functionally intact vacuoles. As we previously described [Roos et al., J. Biol. Chem. 272 (1997) 15849-15855], this transport process is regulated by extravacuolar adenylates at their physiological concentrations. We now show, using our test object Penicillium cyclopium, that not only purine but also pyrimidine nucleotides are involved in the control of efflux of vacuolar phenylalanine. At 0.1 mM adenosine or guanosine phosphates inhibit, whereas cytidine or uridine phosphates stimulate the rate of efflux. At 1 mM the same nucleotides have no measurable impact on efflux but abolish the effects of other nucleotides present at 0.1 mM. This argues for at least two interacting binding sites with different nucleotide affinities. The minimum structural requirement for any of the observed effects is a non-cyclic ribonucleoside monophosphate. In intact cells, cytosolic concentrations of ATP (representing purine nucleotides) and CTP (representing pyrimidine nucleotides) are 1-2 mM and 0.05-0.2 mM, respectively. ATP is therefore assumed to dominate transport control and allow optimum efflux (and uptake) rates. Short-time starvation of carbon and nitrogen adjusts CTP and ATP at levels that cause declining efflux rates. During prolonged starvation both nucleotides fall below their transport-controlling concentrations and thus allow increasing rates of efflux from the still maintained vacuolar pool. Hence, efflux control under nutrient limitation includes an interplay of purine and pyrimidine nucleotides which precisely regulates the release of vacuolar amino acids and enables flexible adjustment to either amino acid saving or cell survival.

Amino Acid Transport Systems↗

Analysis of purine and pyrimidine bases, nucleosides and deoxynucleosides in brain microsamples (microdialysates and micropunches) and cerebrospinal fluid.

A new chromatographic method is reported for the synchronous analysis of endogenous purine and pyrimidine bases, ribonucleosides, and deoxyribonucleosides in brain samples. An optimized gradient chromatography system with a cooled reversed-phase column allows the detection of these compounds in very low concentrations in microsamples (microdialysates and micropunches). Chromatographic peaks were identified via the retention times of known standards, with detection at two wavelengths, and also by electrospray tandem mass spectrometry, which permits the identification of certain compounds at extremely low concentrations. The method was tested on in vivo brain microdialysis samples, micropunch tissue sample and cerebrospinal fluid of rats. Extracellular concentrations of pyrimidine metabolites in brain samples and of various purine metabolites in thalamic samples are reported here first. A comparison of the results on microdialysis and cerebrospinal fluid samples suggests that the analysis of cerebrospinal fluid provides limited information on the local extracellular concentrations of these compounds. Basic dialysis experiments revealed temporarily stable baseline levels one hour after implantation of the microdialysis probes. An elevated potassium concentration in the perfusion solution caused increases in the extracellular levels of adenosine and its metabolites, and of guanosine and the pyrimidine nucleoside uridine.

Animals↗

Synthesis and DHFR inhibitory activity of a series of 6-substituted-2,4-diaminothieno[2,3-d]pyrimidines.

A series of 6-aralkyl substituted 2,4-diaminothieno[2,3-d]pyrimidines in which the 6-aryl group is separated from the thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidine ring by two to five methylene groups were synthesized and studied as inhibitors of dihydrofolate reductase from Pneumocystis carinii, Toxoplasma gondii, Mycobacterium avium, and rat liver. Compounds in which the thieno[2,3-d]pyrimidine ring is separated from the 6-aryl substituent by three methylene groups were the most potent inhibitors of the series (with IC(50) values ranging from 0.24 and 11.0 microM) but those with two methylene groups between the aromatic rings were the most selective agents.

Animals↗

Are pyrimidine dimers tolerated during DNA replication of UV-irradiated parvovirus minute-virus-of-mice in mouse fibroblasts?

The replication of the single-stranded DNA of parvovirus Minute-Virus-of-MIce (MVM) was depressed when virus was exposed to UV-light prior to infection of mouse fibroblasts. Most of the viral DNA containing pyrimidine dimers was permanently blocked in its conversion to double-stranded replicative forms (RF). Yet dimers might be tolerated to a low extent, considering that a minor fraction of parental RF molecules was sensitive to the action of the UV-specific endonuclease V of bacteriophage T4, UV-irradiation of the cells prior to infection with UV-damaged MVM increased the levels of both parental RF and total viral DNA synthesized. The sensitivity of parental RF molecules to the UV-specific endonuclease was little enhanced by preirradiation of the cells and did not appear to be sufficient to account for the stimulation of RF formation in those cultures. Since parvoviral single-stranded DNA is not a substrate for nucleotidyl excision repair, one interpretation of these results would be that the process(es) activated in preirradiated cells overcome(s) barriers to viral DNA replication other than elongation blocks at pyrimidine dimers. Alternatively, pyrimidine dimers tolerated in pretreated cultures might become protected from attack by the UV-endonuclease.

Animals↗

Development and survival of Drosophila melanogaster fed a diet containing pyrimidine analogs.

A single generation of Drosophila melanogaster was raised on different media. One of the media was unsupplemented (the control) and the others were supplemented with pyrimidine analog at 10.3 mmol/kg culture medium. The relative numbers of larvae, pupae, and F1 adults reproduced from parent flies on each medium served as an indication of the relative toxicity of the supplements. The relative decreasing order of toxicity of the pyrimidines was as follows: 5-bromouracil < thymine < uracil = orotic acid = control = cytosine, control < UMP. The toxic effects of 5-bromouracil and thymine seem to be associated with the addition of a bromine or methyl group to carbon 5 of the pyrimidine ring. The UMP supplementation increased the number of adult F1 flies above the control group indicating that UMP was not only non toxic but also that it was beneficial.

Animals↗

Evolutionary implications of the mosaic pyrimidine-biosynthetic pathway in eukaryotes.

The de-novo pyrimidine biosynthetic pathway involves six enzymes, in order from the first to the sixth step, carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase II (CPS II) comprising glutamine amidotransferase (GAT) and carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase (CPS) domains or subunits, aspartate carbamoyltransferase (ACT), dihydroorotase (DHO), dihydroorotate dehydrogenase (DHOD), orotate phosphoribosyltransferase (OPRT), and orotidine-5'-monophosphate decarboxylase (OMPDC). In contrast with reports on molecular evolution of the individual enzymes, we attempted to draw an evolutionary picture of the whole pathway using the protein phylogeny. We demonstrate highly mosaic organizations of the pyrimidine biosynthetic pathway in eukaryotes. During evolution of the eukaryotic pathway, plants and fungi (or their ancestors) in particular may have secondarily acquired the characteristic enzymes. This is consistent with the fact that the organization of plant enzymes is highly chimeric: (1) two subunits of CPS II, GAT and CPS, cluster with a clade including cyanobacteria and red algal chloroplasts, (2) ACT not with a cyanobacterium, Synechocystis spp., irrespective of its putative signal sequence targeting into chloroplasts, and (3) DHO with a clade of proteobacteria. In fungi, DHO and OPRT cluster respectively with the corresponding proteobacterial counterparts. The phylogenetic analyses of DHOD and OMPDC also support the implications of the mosaic pyrimidine biosynthetic pathway in eukaryotes. The potential importance of the horizontal gene transfer(s) and endosymbiosis in establishing the mosaic pathway is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Structural studies on bioactive compounds. Part 29: palladium catalysed arylations and alkynylations of sterically hindered immunomodulatory 2-amino-5-halo-4,6-(disubstituted)pyrimidines.

The immunological agent bropirimine 5 is a tetra-substituted pyrimidine with anticancer and interferon-inducing properties. Synthetic routes to novel 5-aryl analogues of bropirimine have been developed and their potential molecular recognition properties analysed by molecular modelling methods. Sterically challenged 2-amino-5-halo-6-phenylpyrimidin-4-ones (halo = Br or I) are poor substrates for palladium catalysed Suzuki cross-coupling reactions with benzeneboronic acid because the basic conditions of the reaction converts the amphoteric pyrimidinones to their unreactive enolic forms. Palladium-mediated reductive dehalogenation of the pyrimidinone substrates effectively competes with cross-coupling. 2-Amino-5-halo-4-methoxy-6-phenylpyrimidines can be converted to a range of 5-aryl derivatives with the 5-iodopyrimidines being the most efficient substrates. Hydrolysis of the 2-amino-5-aryl-4-methoxy-6-phenylpyrimidines affords the required pyrimidin-4-ones in high yields. Semi-empirical quantum mechanical calculations show how the nature of the 5-substituent influences the equilibrium between the 1H- and 3H-tautomeric forms, and the rotational freedom about the bond connecting the 6-phenyl group and the pyrimidine ring. Both of these factors may influence the biological properties of these compounds.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

New polycyclic pyrimidine derivatives with antiplatelet in vitro activity: synthesis and pharmacological screening.

The preparation and the pharmacological screening of novel anti-aggregatory/antiphlogistic polycyclic pyrimidine derivatives are described. The compounds were developed starting from bioactive 2-aminobenzopyranopyrimidine derivatives in order to assess the importance of the benzopyrano[4,3-d]pyrimidine structure and the role of an amino basic moiety in position 2. Antiplatelet activity was assessed in vitro against ADP and arachidonic acid-induced aggregation in guinea-pig plasma. Anti-inflammatory/analgesic/antipyretic activities were studied in rat paw oedema, mouse writhing test and E. coli-induced rat fever. Ulcerogenic and gastroprotective effects were also investigated in vivo on rat gastric mucosa. Among the tested compounds, the 5-substituted benzopyranopyrimidine derivatives 3d and 4d proved to be the most active antiplatelet agents as potent as acetylsalicylic acid against arachidonic acid-stimulated aggregation. Furthermore the 2-methylthio derivative 4d was endowed with greater efficacy against ADP aggregation suggesting that additional non-TXA2 dependent mechanisms are involved in its biological activity. Orally administered at 100 mg kg(-1) in rats this latter compound displayed antiphlogistic acitivity comparable to indomethacin (10 mg kg(-1)) coupled with an unusual gastroprotective effect on ethanol-induced ulcers. In conclusion, these findings indicate that the 5-pyrrolidino-2-methylthiobenzopyrano[4,3-d]pyrimidine 4d fulfils the chemical requirements to exhibit antiplatelet activity associated with gastroprotective effect.

Analgesics↗

Syntheses and evaluation of pyridazine and pyrimidine containing bioisosteres of (+/-)-pyrido[3.4-b]homotropane and pyrido-[3.4-b]tropane as novel nAChR ligands.

Bioisosteric replacement of the pyridine pharmacophoric element in (+/-)-pyrido[3.4-b]homotropane (PHT) and pyrido[3.4-b]tropane with the pyridazine and pyrimidine nucleus resulted in hitherto unknown nAChR ligands such as 5-8. Inverse type Diels-Alder reactions constitute the key steps in the new routes to the pyridazine- or pyrimidine-annulated bioisosteres. The enantiopure (+)-2-tropinone (11) from the 'chiral pool' is transformed to the ring-expanded silyl enol ether 12 and to the enamine 15. Both proved to be highly dienophilic species in the inverse type [4+2] cycloaddition reactions with the 1,2,4,5-tetrazines 13 and 16a,b or with the 1,3,5-triazine 19 to provide the enantiopure target compounds 5-7. In the same way the racemic pyrimidine-annulated species 8 was obtained from 3-tropanone 21. The new ligands were tested for their in vitro affinity for (alpha4)2(beta2)3 and alpha7* nAChR subtype. In comparison to PHT, well known to exhibit affinity for agonist binding sites in rat brain approximately equivalent to that of (+)-anatoxin-a (1), replacement of the pyridine by the bioisosteric pyridazine resulted in 30-fold lower affinity at the (alpha4)2(beta2)3 subtype. The annulated diazinotropanes 6-8, ligands with ferruginine-like structures more or less retained the affinity of (-)-norferruginine (3) except of compound 7. Remarkably, all of the novel ligands are devoid of affinity at the alpha7* subtype.

Ligands↗

1-Phenylpyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidines as adenosine antagonists: the effects of substituents at C4 and C6.

Forty-two 1-phenyl-pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidines substituted at C6 with thioethers containing distal amide substituents and substituted at C4 with thiol, thiomethyl or amino were synthesized and tested for adenosine A1 and A2a receptor binding. Compared with a thiol at C4, both S-methylation and conversion to an amino resulted in increased affinity at both receptors with the C4 amino compounds having the highest affinity. The C-4 region of the receptor consists of an alkyl pocket containing a hydrogen-bonding site. The study established that for high affinity at both the A1 and A2a adenosine receptors the distal amide should be separated from the C6 thiol by only one carbon. In this study, 2'-(4-amino-1-phenylpyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidin-6-ylthio)-N-ethyl- ethanamide (4b) had the highest affinity at the A1 receptor with a Ki of 12.1 nM while 2'-(4-amino-1-phenylpyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidin-6-ylthio)ethanamid e (4a) had the highest affinity at the A2a receptor with a Ki of 44.9 nM.

Animals↗

Novel antiallergic agents. Part I: Synthesis and pharmacology of pyrimidine amide derivatives.

We have synthesized many pyrimidine amide derivatives. Novel pyrimidine bis-glycolic amide derivatives showed moderate inhibition in the rat passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA) assay by oral administration. Among these compounds, 2,4-bis(methoxyacetylamino)-6-piperidinopyrimidine (2i) exhibited significant inhibition. However the compound (2i) did not inhibit antigen-induced histamine or SRS-A release from lung fragments of the guinea-pig at less than 10(-4) M. Derivatives of 2i have also notable or moderate activity in the rat PCA assay. Compound 2h which has no oxygen atom at the alpha-position of the amide carbonyl group and, compound 17 which has no amide carbonyl group, showed no inhibition in the rat PCA assay. We supposed that both the amide carbonyl group and the oxygen atom at alpha-position of the amide carbonyl group play an important role in inhibiting the rat PCA reaction. These pyrimidine bis-glycolic amide derivatives have a novel structure and unique activity which suggests they may be potentially useful in the treatment of allergic diseases.

Administration, Oral↗

The crystal structure of pyrimidine nucleoside phosphorylase in a closed conformation.

BACKGROUND: Pyrimidine nucleoside phosphorylase (PYNP) catalyzes the reversible phosphorolysis of pyrimidines in the nucleotide synthesis salvage pathway. In lower organisms (e.g. Bacillus stearothermophilus) PYNP accepts both thymidine and uridine, whereas in mammalian and other higher organisms it is specific for thymidine (designated thymidine phosphorylase, TP). PYNP shares 40% sequence similarity (and presumably significant structural similarity) with human TP, which has been implicated as a growth factor in tumor angiogenesis. It is thought that TP undergoes a major conformational change upon substrate binding that consequently produces an active conformation. RESULTS: The crystal structure of PYNP from B. stearothermophilus with the substrate analog pseudouridine in its active site has been solved to 2.1 A resolution. This structure confirms the similarity of PYNP to TP and supports the idea of a closed active conformation, which is the result of rigid body movement of the alpha and alpha/beta domains. The active-site cleft, where the pyrimidine and phosphate substrates bind, is between the two domains. The structure reveals an asymmetric dimer in which one subunit is fully closed and the other is only partially closed. CONCLUSIONS: The closed conformation of PYNP serves as a good model to better understand the domain movement and overall function of TP. Active-site residues are confirmed and a possible mechanism for substrate binding and subsequent domain movement is suggested. Potent inhibitors of TP might have significant therapeutic value in various chemotherapeutic strategies, and the structure of PYNP should provide valuable insight into the rational design of such inhibitors.

Binding Sites↗

Vibrational spectroscopic study on pyrimidine metal(II) tetracyanometalate complexes.

The results of an infrared and Raman spectroscopic study are reported for seven new metal(II) pyrimidine tetracyanonickelate complexes, M(pyr)2Ni(CN)4 [where (pyr) = pyrimidine; M = Mn, Fe, Co, Zn, Ni, Cu or Cd] and an IR spectroscopic study is presented for new cadmium pyrimidine tetracyanometalate complex, Cd(pyr)2Cd(CN)4. The spectral data suggest that the first seven compounds belong to the Hofmann-type and the last compound belongs to the Hofmann-Td-type of complexes.

Biophysical Phenomena↗

Accelerated deamination of cytosine residues in UV-induced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers leads to CC-->TT transitions.

The rate of UV-induced deamination of cytosine to uracil at a specific site in double-stranded (ds) DNA was monitored using a genetic reversion assay. M13mp2C141 ds DNA was exposed to 160 J/m2 UV (254 nm), incubated at 37 degrees C, pH 7.4, for various time intervals to allow for deamination, and treated with Escherichia coli photolyase in the presence of 365 nm light to reverse cyclobutane-type pyrimidine dimers. Upon transfection into uracil-glycosylase deficient (ung-) E. coli cells, the mutation (i.e., reversion) frequencies in the CCCC target sequence increased greatly with post-UV time of incubation at 37 degrees C, nearly doubling every day that the DNA had been held at 37 degrees C. After 8 days, the reversion frequencies had increased by two orders of magnitude upon transfection into ung- cells, relative to isogenic ung+ cells, indicating that most of the mutations arising in UV/photolyase-treated ds DNA were C-->T mutations mediated by a uracil intermediate. Sequencing of the revertants revealed that all mutations were single C-->T or tandem double CC-->TT mutations. An increasing percentage of tandem double CC-->TT mutations was found with longer post-UV incubation times, yet none occurred if the post-UV delay time step was omitted before photoreversal. After a 4-day delay between UV and photoreversal at 37 degrees C, greater than 84% of the total revertants had tandem double CC-->TT mutations. Thus, the generation of a tandem double mutation is a time-dependent process that arises in DNA after the initial UV exposure. The rate of appearance (with a pseudo-first-order rate constant ca. 10(-6) s-1) of tandem double mutations during incubation of UV-irradiated DNA is inconsistent with two random, independently occurring mutational events and suggests a concerted deamination of both residues in a tandem cytosine pyrimidine (C < > C) dimer. Considering that deamination in a C < > C dimer occurred here with a half-life of ca. 5 days, in contrast to the measured half-life of ca. 20,000 years for spontaneous (non-UV-treated) cytosine deamination for the same target, these studies show that the formation of pyrimidine dimers in DNA increases the rate of deamination by six orders of magnitude, leading to the accelerated formation of single C-->T and tandem double CC-->TT mutations.

Bacteriophage M13↗