1.Hydrophobic, aza-glycine analogues of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone.
Ho TL, Nestor JJ Jr, McCrae GI, Vickery BH. Int J Pept Protein Res. 1984 Jul;24(1):79-84.
The effect of combination of the hydrophilic aza-Gly substitution (NHNHCO) at position 10 with hydrophobic, unnatural D-amino acids in position 6 on the potency of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) analogues has been investigated. Previously the aza-Gly residue was shown to provide protection from enzymatic cleavage and lead to potency increases in a less hydrophobic series. The compounds were prepared by coupling of the corresponding nonapeptide acids with semicarbazide hydrochloride by the N,N'-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide/1-hydroxybenzotriazole procedure. The required nonapeptide acids were prepared by the solid phase method on chloromethyl-polystyrene resin using HF/anisole deprotection. The products were purified by preparative reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. The analogues were tested in a rat estrous cyclicity suppression assay designed to show the paradoxical antifertility effects of these compounds.
2.Radioimmunoassay of nafarelin ([ 6-(3-(2-naphthyl)-D-alanine)]-luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone) in plasma or serum.
Nerenberg C, Foreman J, Chu N, Chaplin MD, Kushinsky S. Anal Biochem. 1984 Aug 15;141(1):10-6.
A procedure which is suitable for the radioimmunoassay (RIA) of nafarelin [( 6-(3-(2-naphthyl)-D-alanine)]-luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone) in plasma or serum at concentrations as low as 50 pg/ml is described. Antiserum was prepared by replacing the pyroglutamyl portion of nafarelin with glutaric acid, coupling the product to keyhole limpet hemocyanin, and immunizing rabbits with the resulting conjugate. At a dilution of 1:30,000 the binding was approximately 50%. The antibodies did not cross react with luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone. For RIA, 125I-labeled analyte was used as the tracer and charcoal was used to separate the free and the bound fractions. No purification of samples was required prior to RIA. Accuracy of the method was assessed by adding known quantities of nafarelin to nafarelin-free plasma and determining the ratio of measured to added analyte. Linear regression analysis for the concentration range 0.050-5.00 ng/ml yielded a regression equation of y = 1.
3.Characterization of antinociceptive activity of novel endomorphin-2 and morphiceptin analogs modified in the third position.
Fichna J1, do-Rego JC, Kosson P, Costentin J, Janecka A. Biochem Pharmacol. 2005 Jan 1;69(1):179-85.
In the present study we investigated and compared the in vivo analgesia of centrally administered endomorphin-2 and morphiceptin, and their analogs modified in position 3. Two series of analogs were synthesized by introducing unnatural aromatic amino acids in the D configuration: 3-(1-naphthyl)-D-alanine (D-1-Nal), 3-(2-naphthyl)-D-alanine (D-2-Nal), 3-(4-chlorophenyl)-D-alanine (D-ClPhe), 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-D-alanine (D-Cl2Phe). Antinociceptive activity of endomorphin-2, morphiceptin, and their analogs was compared in the mouse hot-plate test, performed after i.c.v. administration of the peptides at a dose of 10 microg/animal. The best results were obtained for two morphiceptin analogs, [D-Phe3]morphiceptin and [D-1-Nal3]morphiceptin, which showed greatly improved analgesic activity, as compared to morphiceptin. In the endomorphin-2 series none of the modifications produced analogs more potent than the parent compound, but [D-1-Nal3]endomorphin-2 was the best analog.
4.Novel highly potent mu-opioid receptor antagonist based on endomorphin-2 structure.
Fichna J1, do-Rego JC, Janecki T, Staniszewska R, Poels J, Broeck JV, Costentin J, Schiller PW, Janecka A. Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2008 Feb 15;18(4):1350-3. doi: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2008.01.009. Epub 2008 Jan 8.
The mu-opioid agonists endomorphin-1 (Tyr-Pro-Trp-Phe-NH(2)) and endomorphin-2 (Tyr-Pro-Phe-Phe-NH(2)) exhibit an extremely high selectivity for the mu-opioid receptor and thus represent a potential framework for modification into mu-antagonists. Here we report on the synthesis and biological evaluation of novel [d-2-Nal(4)]endomorphin-2 analogs, [Sar(2),d-2-Nal(4)]endomorphin-2 and [Dmt(1),Sar(2),d-2-Nal(4)]endomorphin-2 (Dmt=2'6'-dimethyltyrosine; Sar=N-methylglycine, sarcosine; d-2-Nal=3-(2-naphthyl)-d-alanine). [Dmt(1),Sar(2),d-2-Nal(4)]endomorphin-2 possessed very high affinity for the mu-opioid receptor (IC(50)=0.01+/-0.001 nM) and turned out to be a potent and extremely selective mu-opioid receptor antagonist, as judged by the in vitro aequorin luminescence-based calcium assay (pA(2)=9.19). However, in the in vivo hot plate test in mice this analog was less potent than our earlier mu-opioid receptor antagonist, [Dmt(1),d-2-Nal(4)]endomorphin-2 (antanal-2).
