Studies Towards the Synthesis of Peloruside A

<p>In the search for new treatments for cancer, advances in biology have provided targets for the destruction of cancer cells. One such structure the microtubule, a protein required for cell division, has been the target of many successful anticancer agents including the multi-million dollar earning Taxol [trademark] (paclitaxel) and the epothilones, currently in late-stage clinical trials. More recently it has been shown that peloruside A 1, a secondary metabolite isolated from the New Zealand marine sponge Mycale hentscheli, prevents cell division by stabilising microtubules, and thus offers promise as a novel anticancer agent. However, due to its limited natural abundance, significant quantities of peloruside A can only be obtained through chemical synthesis. A retrosynthetic analysis of peloruside A divided the molecule into four key fragments: a) the commercially available C-l to C-2 benzyloxy acetic acid fragment; b) the C-3 to C-7 fragment; c) the C-8 to C-11 fragment and d) the remaining C-12 to C-24 portion of the macrocycle and side chain. The C-3 to C-7 and C-8 to C-11 fragments combine to form a key intermediate pyranose ring. This thesis however, addresses the synthesis of two of these key fragments, namely the C-8 to C-11 and C-12 to C-24 fragments. An efficient synthesis of the C-8 to C-11 fragment of peloruside A, starting from commercially available pantolactone, has been developed. This synthesis proceeds in good overall yield, and has been successfully reproduced on the multigram scale. The significant portion of this thesis, however, is dedicated to the synthesis of the C-12 to C-24 fragment. After our initial strategy proved unviable, a short, facile method for the synthesis of the C-12 to C-24 fragment, involving the formation of a bis-silyl ether, was developed. The protocol for its desired coupling, via a boron_mediated, remote 1,5-anti-induction aldol reaction has also been established. These and subsequent studies provided valuable insight into the origin of 1,5-anti induction in boron-mediated aldol reactions.</p>

Studies Towards the Synthesis of Peloruside A

<p>In the search for new treatments for cancer, advances in biology have provided targets for the destruction of cancer cells. One such structure the microtubule, a protein required for cell division, has been the target of many successful anticancer agents including the multi-million dollar earning Taxol [trademark] (paclitaxel) and the epothilones, currently in late-stage clinical trials. More recently it has been shown that peloruside A 1, a secondary metabolite isolated from the New Zealand marine sponge Mycale hentscheli, prevents cell division by stabilising microtubules, and thus offers promise as a novel anticancer agent. However, due to its limited natural abundance, significant quantities of peloruside A can only be obtained through chemical synthesis. A retrosynthetic analysis of peloruside A divided the molecule into four key fragments: a) the commercially available C-l to C-2 benzyloxy acetic acid fragment; b) the C-3 to C-7 fragment; c) the C-8 to C-11 fragment and d) the remaining C-12 to C-24 portion of the macrocycle and side chain. The C-3 to C-7 and C-8 to C-11 fragments combine to form a key intermediate pyranose ring. This thesis however, addresses the synthesis of two of these key fragments, namely the C-8 to C-11 and C-12 to C-24 fragments. An efficient synthesis of the C-8 to C-11 fragment of peloruside A, starting from commercially available pantolactone, has been developed. This synthesis proceeds in good overall yield, and has been successfully reproduced on the multigram scale. The significant portion of this thesis, however, is dedicated to the synthesis of the C-12 to C-24 fragment. After our initial strategy proved unviable, a short, facile method for the synthesis of the C-12 to C-24 fragment, involving the formation of a bis-silyl ether, was developed. The protocol for its desired coupling, via a boron_mediated, remote 1,5-anti-induction aldol reaction has also been established. These and subsequent studies provided valuable insight into the origin of 1,5-anti induction in boron-mediated aldol reactions.</p>

Gran1: A Granulysin-Derived Peptide with Potent Activity against Intracellular Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Granulysin is an antimicrobial peptide (AMP) expressed by human T-lymphocytes and natural killer cells. Despite a remarkably broad antimicrobial spectrum, its implementation into clinical practice has been hampered by its large size and off-target effects. To circumvent these limitations, we synthesized a 29 amino acid fragment within the putative cytolytic site of Granulysin (termed “Gran1”). We evaluated the antimicrobial activity of Gran1 against the major human pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and a panel of clinically relevant non-tuberculous mycobacteria which are notoriously difficult to treat. Gran1 efficiently inhibited the mycobacterial proliferation in the low micro molar range. Super-resolution fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy indicated that Gran1 interacts with the surface of Mtb, causing lethal distortions of the cell wall. Importantly, Gran1 showed no off-target effects (cytokine release, chemotaxis, cell death) in primary human cells or zebrafish embryos (cytotoxicity, developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, cardiotoxicity). Gran1 was selectively internalized by macrophages, the major host cell of Mtb, and restricted the proliferation of the pathogen. Our results demonstrate that the hypothesis-driven design of AMPs is a powerful approach for the identification of small bioactive compounds with specific antimicrobial activity. Gran1 is a promising component for the design of AMP-containing nanoparticles with selective activity and favorable pharmacokinetics to be pushed forward into experimental in vivo models of infectious diseases, most notably tuberculosis.

Engineering of the CHAPk Staphylococcal Phage Endolysin to Enhance Antibacterial Activity against Stationary-Phase Cells

Bacteriophage endolysins and their derivatives have strong potential as antibacterial agents considering the increasing prevalence of antibiotic resistance in common bacterial pathogens. The peptidoglycan degrading peptidase CHAPk, a truncated derivate of staphylococcal phage K endolysin (LysK), has proven efficacy in preventing and disrupting staphylococcal biofilms. Nevertheless, the concentration of CHAPk required to eliminate populations of stationary-phase cells was previously found to be four-fold higher than that for log-phase cells. Moreover, CHAPk-mediated lysis of stationary-phase cells was observed to be slower than for log-phase cultures. In the present study, we report the fusion of a 165 amino acid fragment containing CHAPk with a 136 amino acid fragment containing the cell-binding domain of the bacteriocin lysostaphin to create a chimeric enzyme designated CHAPk-SH3blys in the vector pET28a. The chimeric protein was employed in concentrations as low as 5 μg/mL, producing a reduction in turbidity in 7-day-old cultures, whereas the original CHAPk required at least 20 μg/mL to achieve this. Where 7-day old liquid cultures were used, the chimeric enzyme exhibited a 16-fold lower MIC than CHAPk. In terms of biofilm prevention, a concentration of 1 μg/mL of the chimeric enzyme was sufficient, whereas for CHAPk, 125 μg/mL was needed. Moreover, the chimeric enzyme exhibited total biofilm disruption when 5 μg/mL was employed in 4-h assays, whereas CHAPk could only partially disrupt the biofilms at this concentration. This study demonstrates that the cell-binding domain from lysostaphin can make the phage endolysin CHAPk more effective against sessile staphylococcal cells.

Convergent evolution of distinct immune sensor systems for fungal polygalacturonases in Brassicaceae

Plant pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) facilitate recognition of microbial surface patterns and mediate activation of plant immunity. Arabidopsis thaliana RLP42, a leucine-rich repeat (LRR) receptor protein (LRR-RP), senses fungal endopolygalacturonases (PGs) through a ternary complex comprising RLP42, the adapter kinase SOBIR1, and SERK proteins. Several fungal PGs harbor a conserved 9-amino acid fragment pg9(At), which is sufficient to activate RLP42-dependent plant immunity. Domain swap experiments using RLP42 and paralogous RLP40 sequences revealed a dominant role of the island domain (ID) for ligand binding and PRR complex assembly. Involvement of the ID in plant receptor function is reminiscent of plant phytosulfokine (PSK) perception through the receptor, PSKR, a LRR receptor kinase. Sensitivity to pg9(At), which is restricted to A. thaliana, exhibits notable accession specificity as active RLP42 alleles were found in only 16 of 52 accessions tested. Arabidopsis arenosa and Brassica rapa, two Brassicaceae species closely related to A. thaliana, perceive plant immunogenic PG fragments pg20(Aa) or pg36(Bra), which are distinct from pg9(At). Our study unveils unprecedented complexity and dynamics of PG pattern recognition receptor evolution within a single plant family. PG perception systems may have evolved rather independently as a result of convergent evolution even among closely related species.