Super-telomeres in transformed human fibroblasts

Telomere length maintenance is critical for organisms' long-term survival and cancer cell proliferation. Telomeres are kept within species-specific length ranges by the interplay between telomerase activity and telomeric chromatin organization. In this paper, we exploited telomerase immortalized human fibroblasts (cen3tel) that gradually underwent neoplastic transformation during culture propagation to study telomere composition and length regulation during the transformation process. Just after telomerase catalytic subunit (hTERT) expression, cen3tel telomeres shortened despite the presence of telomerase activity. At a later stage and concomitantly with transformation, cells started elongating telomeres, which reached a mean length greater than 100kb in about 900 population doublings. Super-telomeres were stable and compatible with cell growth and tumorigenesis. Telomere extension was associated with increasing levels of telomerase activity that were linked to the deregulation of endogenous telomerase RNA (hTERC) and exogenous telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) expression. Notably, the increase in hTERC levels paralleled the increase in telomerase activity, suggesting that this subunit plays a role in regulating enzyme activity. Telomeres ranging in length between 10 and more than 100kb were maintained in an extendible state although TRF1 and TRF2 binding increased with telomere length. Super-telomeres neither influenced subtelomeric region global methylation nor the expression of the subtelomeric gene FRG1, attesting the lack of a clear-cut relationship between telomere length, subtelomeric DNA methylation and expression in human cells. The cellular levels of the telomeric proteins hTERT, TRF1, TRF2 and Hsp90 rose with transformation and were independent of telomere length, pointing to a role of these proteins in tumorigenesis

Microwave-assisted synthesis and biological evaluation of novel uracil derivatives inhibiting human thymidine phosphorylase

New 5-chloro-6-substituted-uracil derivs. have been prepd. by microwave assisted-synthesis and tested in vitro as thymidine phosphorylase inhibitors. One of these compds. showed potent inhibitory activity, with an IC50 value in the submicromolar range. The biol. activity of the new compds. is discussed in terms of structure-activity relationship

Euro. Ultima Chiamata

This book discusses causes, consequences and future implications of the current european sovereign debt crisis. The book is divided into 6 chapters. The first two are focused on the past and recent history of the process of economic and monetary unification. The third chapter provides a costs and benefits analysis of the first 10 years of the Euro. The fourth chapter is devoted to the analysis of the role of fiscal policy in a monetary union. The fifth chapter takes into consideration different resolution schemes for the management of sovereign debt crisis. The sixth and final chapter concludes with a discussion of the institutional changes necessary to make EMU sustainable over time

N2-Phenyl-9-(hydroxyalkyl)guanines and related compounds are substrates for Herpes simplex thymidine kinases

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 and 2 thymidine kinases (TK) are responsible for phosphorylation of antiherpes acyclonucleosides such as acyclovir (ACV) and 9-(4-hydroxybutyl)guanine (HBG). Related compounds, the N2-phenyl-9-(hydroxyalkyl)guanines, are devoid of direct antiviral activity, but potently inhibit the viral TKs and block viral reactivation from latency in vivo. The similarity in structure between the acyclonucleosides and TK inhibitors raised the question of the relevance of phosphorylation of certain of the latter analogs in their mechanisms of action. Using recombinant TKs and HPLC analysis of reaction mixtures, we report that the lead TK inhibitor N2-phenyl-9-(4-hydroxybutyl)guanine (HBPG) and its pentyl homolog (HPnPG) are excellent substrates for the enzymes, approaching the efficiency with which the natural substrate thymidine is phosphorylated, and significantly better than ACV or HBG. Other 9-hydroxyalkyl congeners are substrates for the enzymes, but with much poorer efficiency. HBPG triphosphate was a poor inhibitor of HSV DNA polymerase, the target of acyclonucleoside triphosphates, suggesting that phosphorylation of HBPG is not important in its mechanism of blocking viral reactivation in vivo. The fact that HBPG is an efficient substrate is consistent, however, with its binding mode based both on molecular modeling studies and x-ray structure of the HBPG:TK complex

Inhibition of herpes simplex virus thymidine kinases by 2-phenylamino-6-oxopurines and related compounds: structure-activity relationships and antiherpetic activity in vivo

Derivatives of the herpes simplex thymidine kinase inhibitor HBPG [2-phenylamino-9-(4-hydroxybutyl)-6-oxopurine] have been synthesized and tested for inhibitory activity against recombinant enzymes (TK) from herpes simplex types 1 and 2 (HSV-1, HSV-2). The compounds inhibited phosphorylation of [3H]thymidine by both enzymes, but potencies differed quantitatively from those of HBPG and were generally greater for HSV-2 than HSV-1 TKs. Changes in inhibitory potency were generally consistent with the inhibitor/substrate binding site structure based on published X-ray structures of HSV-1 TK. In particular, several 9-(4-aminobutyl) analogues with bulky tertiary amino substituents were among the most potent inhibitors. Variable substrate assays showed that the most potent compound, 2-phenylamino-9-[4-(1-decahydroquinolyl)butyl]-6-oxopurine, was a competitive inhibitor, with Ki values of 0.03 and 0.005 microM against HSV-1 and HSV-2 TKs, respectively. The parent compound HBPG was uniquely active in viral infection models in mice, both against ocular HSV-2 reactivation and against HSV-1 and HSV-2 encephalitis. In assays lacking [3H]thymidine, HBPG was found to be an efficient substrate for the enzymes. The ability of the TKs to phosphorylate HBPG may relate to its antiherpetic activity in vivo

Sensitivity of Monkey B Virus (Cercopithecine herpesvirus 1) to Antiviral Drugs: Role of Thymidine Kinase in Antiviral Activities of Substrate Analogs and Acyclonucleosides▿

Herpes B virus (B virus [BV]) is a macaque herpesvirus that is occasionally transmitted to humans where it can cause rapidly ascending encephalitis that is often fatal. To understand the low susceptibility of BV to the acyclonucleosides, we have cloned, expressed, and characterized the BV thymidine kinase (TK), an enzyme that is expected to “activate” nucleoside analogs. This enzyme is similar in sequence and properties to the TK of herpes simplex virus (HSV), i.e., it has a broad substrate range and low enantioselectivity and is sensitive to inhibitors of HSV TKs. The BV enzyme phosphorylates some modified nucleosides and acyclonucleosides and l enantiomers of thymidine and related antiherpetic analogs. However, the potent anti-HSV drugs acyclovir (ACV), ganciclovir (GCV), and 5-bromovinyldeoxyuridine were poorly or not phosphorylated by the BV enzyme under the experimental conditions. The antiviral activities of a number of marketed antiherpes drugs and experimental compounds were compared against BV strains and, for comparison, HSV type 1 (HSV-1) in Vero cell cultures. For most compounds tested, BV was found to be about as sensitive as HSV-1 was. However, BV was less sensitive to ACV and GCV than HSV-1 was. The abilities of thymidine analogs and acyclonucleosides to inhibit replication of BV in Vero cell culture were not always proportional to their substrate properties for BV TK. Our studies characterize BV TK for the first time and suggest new lead compounds, e.g., 5-ethyldeoxyuridine and pencyclovir, which may be superior to ACV or GCV as treatment for this emerging infectious disease

Discovery of Multitarget Antivirals Acting on Both the Dengue Virus NS5-NS3 Interaction and the Host Src/Fyn Kinases

This study describes the discovery of novel dengue virus inhibitors targeting both a crucial viral protein–protein interaction and an essential host cell factor as a strategy to reduce the emergence of drug resistance. Starting from known c-Src inhibitors, a virtual screening was performed to identify molecules able to interact with a recently discovered allosteric pocket on the dengue virus NS5 polymerase. The selection of cheap-to-produce scaffolds and the exploration of the biologically relevant chemical space around them suggested promising candidates for chemical synthesis. A series of purines emerged as the most interesting candidates able to inhibit virus replication at low micromolar concentrations with no significant toxicity to the host cell. Among the identified antivirals, compound 16i proved to be 10 times more potent than ribavirin, showed a better selectivity index and represents the first-in-class DENV-NS5 allosteric inhibitor able to target both the virus NS5–NS3 interaction and the host kinases c-Src/Fyn