An unusual iminoacylation of 2-amino pyridyl thiazole: Synthesis, X-ray crystallography and DFT study of copper(II) amidine complexes and their cytotoxicity, DNA binding and cleavage study

Insertion of acetonitrile in the exocyclic NH2 group of the thiazole unit of 2-amino-4-(2-pyridyl)thiazole (HL) in the presence of copper chloride results in the formation of the monomeric amidine complex [Cu{LC(Me)double bondNH)}Cl2] (1). The same reaction of HL and copper(II) perchlorate yields the complex [Cu(HL)2](ClO4)2 (2), without acetonitrile insertion. However, the presence of a spacer donor, e.g. pyrazine, in the reaction medium results in the formation of a dinuclear amidine derivative, [(ClO4){LC(Me)double bondNH}Cu(μ-pyrazine)Cu{LC(Me)double bondNH}(ClO4)] (ClO4)2 (3). Complexes 1 and 3 are the first examples of copper assisted iminoacylation of 2-amino pyridylthiazole derivatives, confirming a nitrile to amidine transformation. The new complexes were characterized by single crystal X-ray crystallography, cyclic voltammetry and a DFT study. The complexes have a potential cytotoxic effect in human monocytic cells (U937) with IC50 values ranging from 0.84 to 4.5 μM. Significant necrotic activities are ascertained by a lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) enzyme release assay. The interaction with calf thymus (CT) DNA shows the binding constant (Kb) values are ∼104 M−1. The chemical nuclease activity of 1, 2 and 3 result in 65, 99 and 80% relaxation of supercoiled DNA at 10 μM in the presence of glutathione (GSH, 1 mM), respectively. The study with radical scavengers proved that a hydroxyl or singlet oxygen-like species is responsible for the DNA degradation.publishe

Synthesis, characterization, cytotoxicity effect and DNA cleavage study of symmetric dinuclear chloro and azido bridged copper(II) complexes of napthyl-pyrazole based ligand

Symmetric dinuclear chloro copper(II) complex [Cu(L)(Cl)(µ-Cl)]2 (1) and azo dinuclear azido copper(II) complex [Cu2(L)2(N3)3(µ2-N3)]n (2) [where L represents (5-methyl-pyrazol-1-ylmethyl)-napthalen-1-ylmethyl-amine] have been synthesized to examine the effect of napthyl group in the structure of pyrazole based dinuclear copper(II) complexes in DNA nuclease activity. The structure of 1 and 2 are characterized by X-ray crystallography, electrochemistry and various spectroscopic techniques. Coordinating ligand L is generated in situ from bis(3,5-dimethyl-pyrazol-1-ylmethyl)-napthalen-1-ylmethyl-amine (A) during complexation. Cytotoxic potential of free ligand (A), synthesized complexes 1, 2 and one cobalt(II) complex derived from ligand A, CoII(A)Cl2 (3) are analyzed using MTT cytotoxicity assay in U937 human monocytic cell line. Complexes 1 and 2 show very potent cytotoxicity (IC50 = 13–17 μM); the best IC50 value is found for 1. LDH assay revealed that A and 3 has greater necrotic activity than the copper complexes. However, the results of DNA cleavage study clearly demonstrated that symmetric bridged dinuclear complexes with napthyl group lead to high level of nuclease activity 72–75% in the presence of glutathione. The bridged dinuclear copper(II) complexes undergo facile transformation to Cu(I) centre through inner sphere electron transfer mechanism (ISET) in presence of glutathione which facilitate the formation of free radicals/ions for DNA cleavage. Lacking of any reducible metal center in mononuclear cobalt(II) complex make it inactive towards free radicals generation in DNA cleavage activity.publishe

Conformational properties of α-tubulin tail peptide: implications for tail-body interaction

The carboxy-terminal segments of the α/β-tubulins are flexible regions rich in acidic amino acid residues. It is generally believed that these regions play crucial roles in tubulin polymerization and interaction with many ligands, including colchicine. Exactly how these effects are exerted are not known at present. One such interesting aspect is the pH dependence of colchicine-tubulin interaction and the influence of the α-tail on the binding interaction. We have investigated the location of the colchicine-binding site on tubulin by docking. It has been located on the α/β interface on the N-terminal side, which is also supported by much of the solution data. This location is too far from the tail regions, suggesting that influence of the tail region is transmitted by a pH-dependent conformational change. Two-dimensional NMR studies indicate that at pH 7 a 13-residue peptide corresponding to α-tubulin tail shows little NOE constraints, suggesting extended conformation. On the contrary, at pH 5, a relatively compact structure was deduced from the interproton NOE constraints. Pulsed field gradient measurement of diffusion constant indicates that the peptide at pH 5 is substantially faster diffusing than at pH 7. The Perrin factors calculated from diffusion data indicates that the peptide structure at pH is significantly more compact than at pH 7. Temperature coefficients of several amide protons at pH 5 fall below 5 ppb/°K, indicating a degree of protection. A difference is also seen in the CD spectra obtained at different pHs, consistent with the NMR data. We have investigated the probable spatial organization of the tail of the α-subunit of tubulin, in the high pH extended form and the low pH compact form. On the basis of correlation of pH dependence of many properties of tubulin and the conformation of the α-tail peptide, we propose that the intrinsic conformational preference of the tail-region modulate the tail-body interaction, which in turn has important bearing on colchicine binding properties

Role of the carboxy-termini of tubulin on its chaperone-like activity

Mutational analysis and the enzymatic digestion of many chaperones indicate the importance of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic residues for their unique property. Thus, the chaperone activity of α -crystallin is lost due to the substitution of hydrophobic residues or upon enzymatic digestion of the negatively charged residues. Tubulin, an eukaryotic cytoskeletal protein, exhibits chaperone-like activity as demonstrated by prevention of DTT-induced aggregation of insulin, thermal aggregation of alcohol dehydrogenase, βγ -crystallin, and other proteins. We have shown that the tubulin lost its chaperone-like activity upon digestion of its negatively charged C-termini. In this article, the role of the C-terminus of individual subunits has been investigated. We observe that the digestion of C-terminus of β -subunit with subtilisin causes loss of chaperone-like activity of tubulin. The contribution of C-terminus of α -subunit is difficult to establish directly as subtilisin cleaves C-terminus of β -subunit first. This has been ascertained indirectly using a 14-residue peptide P2 having the sequence corresponding to a conserved region of MHC class I molecules and that binds tightly to the C-terminus of α -subunit. We have shown that the binding of P2 peptide to α β -tubulin causes complete loss of its chaperone-like activity. NMR and gel-electrophoresis studies indicate that the P2 peptide has a significant higher binding affinity for the C-terminus of α -subunit compared to that of β -subunit. Thus, we conclude that both the C-termini are necessary for the chaperone-like activity of tubulin. Implications for the chaperone functions in vivo have been discussed

Development of a Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Assay for Rapid Detection of BK Virus

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a novel method for rapid amplification of DNA. Its advantages include rapidity and minimal equipment requirement. The LAMP assay was developed for BK virus (BKV), which is a leading cause of morbidity in renal transplant recipients. The characteristics of the assay, including its specificity and sensitivity, were evaluated. BKV LAMP was performed using various incubation times with a variety of specimens, including unprocessed urine and plasma samples. A ladder pattern on gel electrophoresis, typical of successful LAMP reactions, was observed specifically only for BKV and not for other viruses. The sensitivity of the assay with 1 h of incubation was 100 copies/tube of a cloned BKV fragment. Additionally, a positive reaction was visually ascertained by a simple color reaction using SYBR green dye. BKV LAMP was also successful for urine and plasma specimens without the need for DNA extraction. Due to its simplicity and specificity, the LAMP assay can potentially be developed for “point of care” screening of BKV