Abstract

Dendrimeric compounds were conjugated to oligonucleotides in order to improve their cellular uptake. Second and third generation lipophilic dendrimers were covalently attached either to the 5'- or 3'- end of oligonucleotides. Thermal denaturation experiments showed that the attachment of a third generation dendrimer leads to a substantial decrease in binding affinity. The considerably smaller second-generation dendrimers, however, are well tolerated. Fluorescence measurements revealed that the presence of a second-generation dendrimer leads to a marked increase in the cellular uptake of oligonucleotides.

Highlights

  • There is considerable pharmaceutical interest in the use of synthetic oligonucleotides that intervene in the process of gene expression, such as antisense oligonucleotides[1] or siRNAs.[2]

  • Synthesis of the oligonucleotide dendrimer conjugates The dendrons 1 and 2 were prepared following the method of Frėchet.[18]

  • The conversion of dendrimers 1 and 2 into activated N-hydroxy succinimide (NHS-) esters is shown in Scheme 1

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Summary

Introduction

There is considerable pharmaceutical interest in the use of synthetic oligonucleotides that intervene in the process of gene expression, such as antisense oligonucleotides[1] or siRNAs.[2]. The present paper describes the synthesis of various 5′- and 3′-oligonucleotide-dendrimer conjugates, their hybridization properties and uptake by T24 cells. For the synthesis of 3′-oligonucleotide-dendrimer conjugates, a dendrimer-derived solid support was prepared.

Results
Conclusion

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