Synthesis of 5-Phenylcytosine Nucleoside Derivatives

Reaction of silylated 5-phenylcytosine with 1-O-acetyl-2,3,5-tri-O-benzoyl-D-ribose, catalyzed with tin tetrachloride, and subsequent methanolysis afforded 5-phenylcytidine (2). This compound reacted with thionyl chloride in acetonitrile to give cyclic sulfite 3 which on heating in dimethylformamide was converted into 2,2'-anhydro-1-(β-D-arabinofuranosyl)-5-phenylcytosine (4). Analogous reaction of compound 2 with thionyl chloride at reflux gave 5'-chloro-5'-deoxy-2',3'-cyclic sulfite 5. Its heating in dimethylformamide afforded 5'-chloro-2,2'-anhydro derivative 6, mild alkaline hydrolysis led to 5'-chloro-5'-deoxy-5-phenylcytidine (7). Alkaline hydrolysis of 5-phenyl-2,2'-anhydrocytidine (4) gave 5-phenylcytosine arabinoside 8, whereas the 2,2'-anhydro derivative 6 afforded 1-(5-chloro-5-deoxy-β-D-arabinofuranosyl)-5-phenylcytosine (11). At higher temperature, the final reaction product was 2,5'-anhydro-5-phenylcytidine (12). 5'-Chloro-5'-deoxynucleosides 7 and 11 reacted with tri-n-butyl- stannane to give 5'-deoxyribofuranosyl and 5'-deoxyarabinofuranosyl derivatives 15 and 16. 5-Phenylcytidine (2) was converted into the N4-acetate 17 with acetic anhydride. Further reaction with acetic anhydride and hydrogen bromide in acetic acid afforded a mixture of peracetylated 2'-bromo and 3'-bromo derivatives 18 and 19. Reaction with Zn/Cu couple gave 5'-O-acetyl-5-phenyl-2',3'-didehydro derivative 20 and 2',3',5'-tri-O-acetyl-5-phenylcytidine (21). Compound 20 was deblocked to 1-(2,3-dideoxy-β-D-glycero-pent-2-enofuranosyl)-5-phenylcytosine (22). Catalytic hydrogenation of compound 20 over palladium and subsequent deblocking of the protected 2',3'-dideoxy derivative 23 gave 1-(2,3-dideoxy-β-D-glycero-pentofuranosyl)-5-phenylcytosine (24).

Quantitative in situ analysis of xanthine oxidoreductase activity in rat liver.

The tetrazolium salt method previously developed for the detection of xanthine oxidoreductase activity in unfixed cryostat sections has been validated for quantitative purposes. The specificity of the enzyme reaction was studied by incubating unfixed cryostat sections of rat liver in test medium containing the substrate hypoxanthine, in control medium that lacked the substrate, and in medium containing substrate and allopurinol, a specific inhibitor of xanthine oxidoreductase activity. The specific reaction rate was determined cytophotometrically by subtracting the amount of final reaction product generated in the control reaction from that formed in the test reaction. Highest specific enzyme activity in rat liver was found when the incubation medium contained 18% (w/v) polyvinyl alcohol, 100 mM phosphate buffer, pH 7.8, 0.45 mM 1-methoxyphenazine methosulfate, 5 mM tetranitro BT, and 0.5 mM hypoxanthine. Enzyme activity was present in liver parenchymal cells and in sinusoidal cells (endothelial and Kupffer cells) and was completely inhibited by allopurinol. A linear relationship was observed between the specific amount of final reaction product generated at 37 degrees C and incubation time at least up to 21 min, as well as section thickness up to 12 microns. Xanthine oxidoreductase activity, expressed as mumoles substrate converted per cm3 tissue/min, was 1.61 +/- 0.34 in pericentral areas and 1.24 +/- 0.16 in periportal areas. These values are similar to biochemical data reported in the literature. In conclusion, the tetrazolium method to detect xanthine oxidoreductase activity in unfixed cryostat sections of rat liver gives a reliable reflection of in situ activity.

A quantitative histochemical study of xanthine oxidase activity in rat liver using the cerium capture method in the presence of polyvinyl alcohol.

A recently developed histochemical technique to demonstrate xanthine oxidase activity in milk globules of bovine mammary gland and in epithelial cells of rat small intestine using cerium ions and a semipermeable membrane was slightly modified. The semipermeable membrane method was replaced by the addition of 10% (w/v) polyvinyl alcohol to the incubation medium. This technically more simple procedure enabled detection of xanthine oxidase activity in unfixed cryostat sections of rat liver. Both methods gave qualitatively and quantitatively similar results. Activity was found in sinusoidal cells and in liver parenchymal cells, with 50% higher activity in pericentral than in periportal areas. The specificity of the reaction was proven by the generation of only small amounts of final reaction product on incubation either in the absence of the substrates hypoxanthine or oxygen or in the presence of hypoxanthine and allopurinol. Allopurinol is a specific inhibitor of xanthine oxidase activity. The amount of final reaction product, as measured cytophotometrically in rat liver, increased linearly with incubation time (15-90 min) and with section thickness (up to 12 microns). By varying the hypoxanthine concentrations, a Km value of 0.05 mM was found. Addition of dithiothreitol to the incubation medium reduced the amount of final reaction product by 85%, which was caused by conversion of reversible xanthine oxidase into xanthine dehydrogenase. This histochemical method can be used for quantitative analysis of in situ xanthine oxidase activity.

A histochemical procedure for light microscopic demonstration of xanthine oxidase activity in unfixed cryostat sections using cerium ions and a semipermeable membrane technique.

Xanthine oxidoreductase exists in two functionally distinct forms. Under normal conditions, the larger part of the enzyme occurs as an NAD(+)-dependent dehydrogenase form which produces NADH and urate. The dehydrogenase can be transformed under various (patho)physiological conditions to an oxygen-dependent oxidase form which produces oxygen radicals and/or hydrogen peroxide and urate. Tetrazolium salts are used to demonstrate the total activity of both the dehydrogenase and the oxidase form of the enzyme. We have developed a procedure to detect the oxidase form only in unfixed cryostat sections with the use of cerium on the basis of the semipermeable membrane technique. The incubation medium contained hypoxanthine as substrate, cerium ions, and sodium azide to inhibit catalase and peroxidase activity. In a second-step reaction, diaminobenzidine was polymerized in the presence of cobalt ions by decomposition of cerium perhydroxide. Large amounts of final reaction product were found in milk droplets in the acini of lactating bovine mammary gland, whereas milk-secreting epithelial cells contained hardly any final reaction product. In rat duodenum, enzyme activity was found in the cytoplasm of enterocytes and goblet cells but not in the mucus. Control reactions performed in the absence of substrate or in the presence of substrate and allopurinol, a specific inhibitor of xanthine oxidase, were completely negative in both tissues, with the exception of polymorphonuclear leukocytes in the lamina propria of duodenum. The positive nonspecific reaction in these cells was caused by myeloperoxidase activity. We conclude that the present method is specific for the detection of xanthine oxidase activity. Moreover, conversion of the dehydrogenase form into the oxidase form can be prevented by omission of chemical fixation of the tissue in the present procedure.

X-Ray Absorption Studies of Ti/Polymer and Cr/Polymer Interfaces

The interface formed between metals, Ti and Cr, and polymers, epoxy and triazine, have been studied, nondestructively, using x-ray absorption spectroscopy. The metals were sputtered onto the polymer surfaces. Titanium reacts extensively, up to Ti thicknesses of 100 Å while Cr remains primarily metallic. In situ heating at 200°C increases the extent of reaction for both metals. Heating has a greater effect on metal/epoxy interfaces than metal/triazine. Titanium and Cr were ion implanted into the polymer in order to determine the interactions of isolated metal atoms with the polymer. Titanium and Cr appear to form oxides as the final reaction product, and the Ti is tetrahedrally coordinated.

The use of unfixed cryostat sections for electron microscopic study of D-amino acid oxidase activity in rat liver.

Unfixed cryostat sections of rat liver were incubated to demonstrate D-amino acid oxidase activity at the ultrastructural level. Incubation was performed by mounting the sections on a semipermeable membrane which was stretched over a gelled incubation medium containing D-proline as substrate and cerium ions as capture reagent for hydrogen peroxide. After an incubation period of 30 min, ultrastructural morphology was retained to such an extent that the final reaction product could be localized in peroxisomes, whereas the crystalline core remained unstained. Control incubations were performed in the absence of substrate; the lack of final reaction product in peroxisomes indicated the specificity of the reaction. We conclude that the semipermeable membrane technique opens new perspectives for localization of enzyme activities at the ultrastructural level without prior tissue fixation, thus enabling localization of the activity of soluble and/or labile enzymes.

A novel tetrazolium method for peroxidase histochemistry and immunohistochemistry.

We developed a new method for the histochemical demonstration of peroxidase. This method, which has a novel reaction mechanism, is based on the oxidation of phenol by peroxidase and coupling of this reaction to the reduction of a tetrazolium salt, with the deposition of an insoluble formazan at sites of enzyme activity. This new method was compared with an established diaminobenzidine (DAB) technique for peroxidase histochemistry and immunohistochemistry. Although both methods identified peroxidase activity in myeloid cells of bone marrow biopsy specimens, there was no interference from red cell pseudoperoxidase activity with the phenol-tetrazolium method, in contrast to the diaminobenzidine method. The detection of cytokeratin using an indirect immunoperoxidase technique was compared with both methods for demonstrating peroxidase activity. The phenol-tetrazolium method gave results similar to that obtained with DAB and appeared to be at least as sensitive as DAB in detecting low amounts of antigen. In addition, the production of a formazan as the final reaction product means that the phenol-tetrazolium method is ideally suited for quantitative peroxidase histochemistry. Therefore, the phenol-tetrazolium method represents a useful alternative method to DAB and for certain applications offers significant advantages over DAB.

A quantitative histochemical study of D-amino acid oxidase activity in rat liver in relationship with feeding conditions.

The histochemical method for the demonstration of D-amino acid oxidase activity in rat liver, based on the use of cerium ions and the diaminobenzidine-cobalt-hydrogen peroxide procedure, was improved by the application of unfixed cryostat sections and a semipermeable membrane interposed between section and gelled incubation medium. The amount of final reaction product precipitated in a granular form was about four times higher with this technique in comparison with conventional procedures using fixed sections and aqueous incubation media. The specificity of the reaction was proven by the 70% reduction of the amount of final reaction product when incubating in the presence of substrate and D,L-beta-hydroxybutyrate, a specific inhibitor of D-amino acid oxidase activity. Cytophotometric analysis of liver sections revealed that the specific test minus control reaction was linear with incubation time and section thickness. The Km value of the enzyme of 10.3 +/- 2.7 mM, as determined in periportal areas, is about five times the value found with biochemical methods in liver cell homogenates. The enzyme activity in periportal areas is about five times the activity in pericentral areas. Fasting (24 and 48 hr) induced a significant decrease in D-amino acid activity in periportal and pericentral areas. The possible physiological role of the enzyme in liver is discussed.