Search

The delivery of the anti-HIV agent 3′-azido-3′-deoxythymidine (AZT), in its 5′-monophosphate form, (in)to human T-lymphocyte MT-4 cells in vitro through covalent coupling to neoglycoproteins was investigated. In vivo application of this drug targeting concept may lead to increased efficacy and/or diminished side effects caused by AZT during the treatment of AIDS and ARC patients. The rationale for the design of the neoglycoprotein carriers is based on the existence of sugar recognizing lectins on T-lymphocytes. Using a phenyl-linkage between sugar and Human Serum Albumin (HSA), various mannose-, fucose-, galactose- and glucose-containing neoglycoproteins were synthesized. The intrinsic anti-HIV activity of these neoglycoproteins was tested in vitro in HIV-1 infected MT-4 cells. Only the derivative having 40 moles mannose per mole protein (Man 40 HSA) shows pronounced anti-HIV-1 activity itself. This effect may be caused by interference of the Man 40 HSA with the gp120-CD4 mediated virus/MT-4 cell interaction. After conjugation with AZTMP, the mannose- as well as the fucose- and galactose-containing conjugates exhibited a pronounced activity. Conjugates of glucose-HSA and HSA displayed much less activity in spite of the fact that drug loading was considerably higher, compared with the galactose, mannose and fucose derivatives. In the series of mannose-neoglycoproteins, the Man 22 HSA-AZTMP conjugate was shown to be more than 30 times as active against HIV-1 compared to HSA-AZTMP. Selectivity indices of Man 7 - and Man 22 HSA-AZTMP were exceeding the AZT and AZTMP indices, indicating that these conjugates possess a more selective action. Stability experiments indicate that the potent action of the galactose-, mannose- and fucose-HSA-AZTMP conjugates is not due to a complete extracellular hydrolysis of the covalent drug-protein bond. Since Man 22 HSA has no intrinsic activity in the concentration range used, the antiviral effect is unlikely to be explained by synergism of extracellular released AZTMP/AZT and the carrier. Possibly, delivery of AZTMP through recognition of the neoglycoprotein by a component of the cell membrane and subsequent internalization and release of the drug from the conjugate may play a role.

A series of 5'-phosphorylated derivatives of 3'-azido-2',3'-dideoxythymidine (AzddThd), inclucling AzddThd 5'-mono- and 5'-triphosphate, α,β-methylene AzddThd-5'-diphosphate, α,β-methylene AzddThd-5'-trisphosphate, and β,γ-methylene AzddThd-5'-triphosphate, were evaluated for their cytostatic and anti-retrovirus properties, and their inhibitory effects on the reverse transcriptases of Moloney murine leukemia virus and human immunodeficiency virus. In contrast with the 5'-mono- and 5'-triphosphates of AzddThd, which showed cytostatic and anti-retrovirus activities comparable to those of AzddThd, the α,β-methylene 5'-phosphonates of AzddThd were considerably less cytostatic and also much less inhibitory to cell transformation by Moloney murine sarcoma virus and cytopathogenicity of human immunodeficiency virus. The decreased biological activity of the phosphonate derivatives of AzddThd is most likely due to the resistance of these compounds to phosphorolytic attack by phosphodiesterases and phosphatases, and the reduced affinity for the retrovirus-associated reverse transcriptase.

The 3′-fluoro-and 3′-azido-substituted derivatives of 2′,3′-dideoxythymidine (ddThd), 2′,3′-dideoxyuridine (ddUrd), 2′,3′-dideoxy-5-ethyluridine (ddEtUrd) and 2′,3′-dideoxycytidine (ddCyd) have been synthesized and evaluated for their anti-retrovirus activity [against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and murine Moloney sarcoma virus (MSV)]. Based on their 50% effective doses the most potent inhibitors of HIV replication in human MT4 lymphocytes were: FddThd (0.001 μM), AzddThd (0.004 μM), FddUrd (0.04 μM) and AzddUrd (0.36 μm). Their selectivity indexes were 197, 5000, 500 and 677, respectively. In contrast, none of the 3′-substituted ddEtUrd derivatives had a marked anti-viral effect. The 2′,3′-dideoxynucleoside analogues showed poor, if any, substrate affinity for (bacterial) dThd phosphorylase. AzddThd and FddThd inhibited human dThd kinase to a much greater extent ( K i / K m : 0.66 and 3.4, respectively) than did AzddUrd or FddUrd ( K i / K m : 71 and 171, respectively). The K i / K m values of FddCyd and AzddCyd for human dCyd kinase were about 60. Although phosphorylation is a prerequisite for the anti-retrovirus activity of the 2′,3′-dideoxynucleoside derivatives, there is no close correlation between the anti-retrovirus potency of the 3′-fluoro- and 3′-azido-substituted ddUrd, ddThd, ddEtUrd and ddCyd derivatives and their affinity for dThd kinase or dCyd kinase.

Cell lines derived from different species show striking differences in their sensitivity to the cytostatic and anti-retrovirus activity, as well as the intracellular metabolism, of 3'-azido-2',3'-dideoxythymidine (AzddThd) and2',3'-dideoxycytidine (ddCyd). AzddThd and ddCyd are considerably more cytostatic to human (i.e. Raji, Molt/4F, ATH8) cell lines than murine (i.e. L1210) cells. The intracellular levels of AzddThd 5'-triphosphate and ddCyd 5'-triphosphate formed do not seem related to the cytostatic effects achieved by these compounds. In human lymphoid (ATH8, Molt/4F) and caprine ovary (Tahr) cells AzddThd accumulates as its 5'-monophosphate (AzddTMP), whereas in murine leukemia (L1210) cells it is readily metabolized to the 5'-triphosphate (AzddTTP). The rapid conversion of AzddThd to AzddTTP in murine cells may explain why AzddThd has a pronounced activity against Moloney murine sarcoma virus (MSV)-induced transformation of murine C3H cells in vitro and MSV-induced tumor development in newborn NMRI mice in vivo. In contrast, ddCyd has not much activity in these murine assay systems, and this may seem related to the poor conversion of ddCyd to its 5'-triphosphate in murine cells. In human cells, however, ddCyd is more extensively phosphorylated to its 5'-triphosphate than in murine cells. When [3H]AzddThd and [3H]ddCyd were compared for their metabolism in ATH8 and Molt/4F cells, little [3H]AzddTTP was formed even after a 48-hr incubation period, whereas under the same conditions substantial levels of [3H]ddCTP built up gradually. Thus, much higher ddCTP than AzddTTP levels were achieved in human lymphoid cells, an observation that may be particularly relevant from a therapeutic viewpoint.

Several 2',3'-dideoxyadenosine analogues with modifications in either the ribose or purine moiety were evaluated for their inhibitory effects on the replication of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in MT-4 cell cultures. The 2',3'-dideoxyriboside of 2,6-diaminopurine (ddDAPR) inhibited HIV antigen expression and HIV-induced cytopathogenicity at a 50% effective dose of 2.4-3.8 microM, as compared to 3-6 microM for 2',3'-dideoxyadenosine (ddAdo), whereas 50% inhibition of MT-4 cell viability was noted only at a concentration of 477 and 889 microM, respectively. Both ddDAPR and ddAdo were only weakly inhibitory to the proliferation of a number of T-lymphoblast and T-lymphocyte cell lines, pointing to the selectivity of these compounds as anti-HIV agents. In contrast to ddAdo, ddDAPR was found to be a poor substrate for adenosine deaminase, which may be advantageous from a chemotherapeutic viewpoint. Substitution of an azido or fluoro group at the 2' and 3'-position of the ribose moiety in either "up" or "down" configurations resulted in a decrease of the anti-HIV potency and selectivity of ddAdo. In addition to ddDAPR other purine-modified ddAdo analogues, i.e. several pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidine 2',3'-dideoxynucleosides, were investigated for their anti-HIV activity, but none of these derivatives proved as potent or selective as ddDAPR.