Project description:Iron chelating agents have the potential to minimize damage associated with oxidative stress in a range of diseases; however, this potential is countered by risks of indiscriminant metal binding or iron depletion in conditions not associated with systemic iron overload. Deferasirox is a chelator used clinically for iron overload, but also is cytotoxic to cells in culture. In order to test whether a prodrug version of deferasirox could minimize its cytotoxicity but retain its protective properties against iron-induced oxidative damage, we synthesized a prochelator that contains a self-immolative boronic ester masking group that is removed upon exposure to hydrogen peroxide to release the bis-hydroxyphenyltriazole ligand deferasirox. We present here the synthesis and characterization of this triazole-based, self-immolative prochelator: TIP (4-(5-(2-((4-boronobenzyl)oxy)phenyl)-3-(2-hydroxyphenyl)-1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)benzoic acid). TIP does not coordinate to Fe(3+) and shows only weak affinity for Cu(2+) or Zn(2+), in stark contrast to deferasirox, which avidly binds all three metal ions. TIP converts efficiently in vitro upon reaction with hydrogen peroxide to deferasirox. In cell culture, TIP protects retinal pigment epithelial cells from death induced by hydrogen peroxide; however, TIP itself is more cytotoxic than deferasirox in unstressed cells. These results imply that the cytotoxicity of deferasirox may not derive exclusively from its iron withholding properties.
Project description:Described here is the development of two boronic ester-based fluorescent prochelators, FloB (2-(6-hydroxy-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl)-4(5)-[2-(4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-[1,3,2]dioxaborolan-2-yl)-benzylidene-hydrazinocarbonyl]-benzoic acid) and FloB-SI (2-(6-hydroxy-3-oxo-3Hxanthen-9-yl)-4(5)-[2-(4-(4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-1,3,2-dioxaborolan-2-yl)benzyloxy)-benzylidene-hydrazinocarbonyl]-benzoic acid) that show a fluorescence response to a variety of transition metal ions only after reaction with H(2)O(2). Both prochelators' boronic ester masks are oxidized by H(2)O(2) to reveal a fluorescein-tagged metal chelator, FloS (4(5)-(2-hydroxy-benzylidenehydrazinocarbonyl)-2-(6-hydroxy-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl)-benzoic acid). Chelation of Fe(3+) or Cu(2+) elicits a 70% decrease in the emission signal of FloS, while Zn(2+), Ni(2+), and Co(2+) produce a more modest fluorescence decrease. The conversion of FloB to FloS proceeds in organic solvents, but hydrolytic decomposition of its hydrazone backbone is observed in aqueous solution. However, FloB-SI oxidizes cleanly with H(2)O(2) within 1 h in aqueous solutions to produce FloS. Fluorescence microscopy studies in HeLa cells with FloB-SI show that the sensor's fluorescence intensity remains unchanged until incubation with exogenous H(2)O(2), which results in a decreased fluorescent signal. Incubation with a competitive chelator restores the emission response, thus suggesting that FloB-SI can effectively report on a H(2)O(2)-induced increase in intracellular labilized metal.
Project description:A prochelator named BHAPI (N'-(1-(2-(4-(4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-1,3,2-dioxaborolan-2-yl)benzyloxy)phenyl)ethylidene)isonicotinohydrazide) based on the structure of experimental metal chelator HAPI (N'-[1-(2-hydroxyphenyl)ethyliden]isonicotinoylhydrazide) has been synthesized. The prochelator, which shows limited affinity for metal ions, is converted efficiently upon reaction with hydrogen peroxide into its chelator form, which binds di- and trivalent metal ions, including Zn(2+), Cu(2+) and Fe(3+). This work shows that the prochelator has a protective effect on cells under oxidative stress induced by either hydrogen peroxide or the cytotoxic herbicide paraquat. The effect of BHAPI and HAPI on cellular iron status was assessed by monitoring the mRNA level of the transferrin receptor. Whereas the chelator HAPI induces iron deficiency in cultured retinal pigment epithelial cells, the prochelator does not, providing evidence that the differential metal-binding capacity of these compounds observed in vitro is replicated in the cellular context.
Project description:Metal chelators masked with protecting groups for targeted release have the potential to conditionally modulate cellular metals. We report a new route to prepare cis-cinnamate protecting groups that enabled development of a prochelator with chemical stimulus response, fluorescent reporting and active compound release in a single structure.
Project description:Dysregulation of localized iron homeostasis is implicated in several degenerative diseases, including Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and age-related macular degeneration, wherein iron-mediated oxidative stress is hypothesized to contribute to cell death. Inhibiting toxic iron without altering normal metal-dependent processes presents significant challenges for standard small molecule chelating agents. We previously introduced BSIH (isonicotinic acid [2-(4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-[1,3,2]dioxaborolan-2-yl)-benzylidene]-hydrazide) prochelators that are converted by hydrogen peroxide into SIH (salicylaldehyde isonicotinoyl hydrazone) chelating agents that inhibit iron-catalyzed hydroxyl radical generation. Here, we show that BSIH protects a cultured cell model for retinal pigment epithelium against cell death induced by hydrogen peroxide. BSIH is more stable than SIH in cell culture medium and is more protective during long-term experiments. Repetitive exposure of cells to BSIH is nontoxic, whereas SIH and desferrioxamine induce cell death after repeated exposure. Combined, our results indicate that cell protection by BSIH involves iron sequestration that occurs only when the cells are stressed by hydrogen peroxide. These findings suggest that prochelators discriminate toxic iron from healthy iron and are promising candidates for neuro- and retinal protection.
Project description:Aerobic growth of Streptococcus pneumoniae results in production of amounts of hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) that may exceed 1 mM in the surrounding media. H(2)O(2) production by S. pneumoniae has been shown to kill or inhibit the growth of other respiratory tract flora, as well as to have cytotoxic effects on host cells and tissue. The mechanisms allowing S. pneumoniae, a catalase-deficient species, to survive endogenously generated concentrations of H(2)O(2) that are sufficient to kill other bacterial species is unknown. In the present study, pyruvate oxidase (SpxB), the enzyme responsible for endogenous H(2)O(2) production, was required for survival during exposure to high levels (20 mM) of exogenously added H(2)O(2). Pretreatment with H(2)O(2) did not increase H(2)O(2) resistance in the mutant, suggesting that SpxB activity itself is required, rather than an H(2)O(2)-inducible pathway. SpxB mutants synthesized 85% less acetyl-phosphate, a potential source of ATP. During H(2)O(2) exposure, ATP levels decreased more rapidly in spxB mutants than in wild-type cells, suggesting that the increased killing of spxB mutants was due to more rapid ATP depletion. Together, these data support the hypothesis that S. pneumoniae SpxB contributes to an H(2)O(2)-resistant energy source that maintains viability during oxidative stress. Thus, SpxB is required for resistance to the toxic by-product of its own activity. Although H(2)O(2)-dependent hydroxyl radical production and the intracellular concentration of free iron were similar to that of Escherichia coli, killing by H(2)O(2) was unaffected by iron chelators, suggesting that S. pneumoniae has a novel mechanism to avoid the toxic effects of the Fenton reaction.
Project description:Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a reactive oxygen species (ROS) involved in various diseases, including neurodegeneration, diabetes, and cancer. Here, we introduce a new approach to use H2O2 to modulate specific gene expression in mammalian cells. H2O2-responsive nucleoside analogues, in which the Watson-Crick faces of the nucleobases are caged by arylboronate moieties, were synthesized. One of these analogues, boronated thymidine (dTB ), was incorporated into oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) using an automated DNA synthesizer. The hybridization ability of this boronated ODN to complementary RNA was clearly switched in the off-to-on direction upon H2O2 addition. Furthermore, we demonstrated H2O2-triggered gene silencing in mammalian cells using antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) modified with dTB . Our approach can be used for the regulation of any gene of interest by the sequence design of boronated ASOs and will contribute to the development of targeted disease therapeutics.
Project description:Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is an important signaling molecule in cancer cells. However, the significant secretion of H2O2 by cancer cells have been rarely observed. Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) is a near room temperature ionized gas composed of neutral particles, charged particles, reactive species, and electrons. Here, we first demonstrated that breast cancer cells and pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells generated micromolar level H2O2 during just 1 min of direct CAP treatment on these cells. The cell-based H2O2 generation is affected by the medium volume, the cell confluence, as well as the discharge voltage. The application of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) in cancer treatment has been intensively investigated over the past decade. Several cellular responses to CAP treatment have been observed including the consumption of the CAP-originated reactive species, the rise of intracellular reactive oxygen species, the damage on DNA and mitochondria, as well as the activation of apoptotic events. This is a new previously unknown cellular response to CAP, which provides a new prospective to understand the interaction between CAP and cells in vitro and in vivo. The short-lived reactive species in CAP may activate cells in vivo to generate long-lived reactive species such as H2O2, which may trigger immune attack on tumorous tissues via the H2O2-mediated lymphocyte activation.
Project description:The quinones 1,4-naphthoquinone (NQ), tetramethyl-1,4-benzoquinone (DQ), 2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone (MNQ), 2,3-dimethoxy-5-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone (UBQ-0), 2,6-dimethylbenzoquinone (DMBQ), 2,6-dimethoxybenzoquinone (DMOBQ), and 9,10-phenanthraquinone (PHQ) enhance the rate of H2O2 reduction by ascorbate, under anaerobic conditions, as detected from the amount of methane produced after hydroxyl radical reaction with dimethyl sulfoxide. The amount of methane produced increases with an increase in the quinone one-electron reduction potential. The most active quinone in this series, PHQ, is only 14% less active than the classic Fenton reagent cation, Fe(2+), at the same concentration. Since PHQ is a common toxin present in diesel combustion smoke, the possibility that PHQ-mediated catalysis of hydroxyl radical formation is similar to that of Fe(2+) adds another important pathway to the modes in which PHQ can execute its toxicity. Because quinones are known to enhance the antitumor activity of ascorbate and because ascorbate enhances the formation of H2O2 in tissues, the quinone-mediated reduction of H2O2 should be relevant to this type of antitumor activity, especially under hypoxic conditions.