Methionine Derivatives Research Articles

Hydrated metal(II) complexes of N-(6-amino-3,4-dihydro-3-methyl-5-nitroso-4-oxopyrimidin-2-yl) derivatives of glycine, glycylglycine, threonine, serine, valine and methionine: a monomeric complex and coordination polymers in one, two and three dimensions linked by hydrogen bonding. Corrigendum

Some of the data collection details for compound (VIII) were incorrectly given in Table 1 of Godino Salido et al. (2004). The data for compound VIII in this paper were collected using synchrotron radiation at the Daresbury SRS station 9.8, λ = 0.6935 Å (Cernik et al., 1997; Clegg, 2000). The data were collected using a Bruker SMART 1K CCD diffractometer using ω rotation with narrow frames. The computer program used in the data collection was SMART (Bruker, 2001) and for cell refinement and data reduction SAINT (Bruker, 2001).

Synthesis and Pharmacological Activity of N‐[β‐(para‐Substituted Benzoyl)ethyl]isoleucine and ‐methionine.

AbstractFor Abstract see ChemInform Abstract in Full Text.

Aminoacylase I deficiency: A novel inborn error of metabolism

This is the first report of a patient with aminoacylase I deficiency. High amounts of N-acetylated amino acids were detected by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry in the urine, including the derivatives of serine, glutamic acid, alanine, methionine, glycine, and smaller amounts of threonine, leucine, valine, and isoleucine. NMR spectroscopy confirmed these findings and, in addition, showed the presence of N-acetylglutamine and N-acetylasparagine. In EBV transformed lymphoblasts, aminoacylase I activity was deficient. Loss of activity was due to decreased amounts of aminoacylase I protein. The amount of mRNA for the aminoacylase I was decreased. DNA sequencing of the encoding ACY1 gene showed a homozygous c.1057 C > T transition, predicting a p.Arg353Cys substitution. Both parents were heterozygous for the mutation. The mutation was also detected in 5/161 controls. To exclude the possibility of a genetic polymorphism, protein expression studies were performed showing that the mutant protein had lost catalytic activity.

Nicotianamine Over-accumulation Confers Resistance to Nickel in Arabidopsis thaliana

Nicotianamine is a methionine derivative involved in iron homeostasis, able to bind various other metals in vitro. To investigate its role in vivo, we expressed a nicotianamine synthase cDNA (TcNAS1) isolated from the polymetallic hyperaccumulator Thlaspi caerulescens in Arabidopsis thaliana. Transgenic plants expressing TcNAS1 over-accumulated NA, up to 100-fold more than wild type plants. Furthermore, increased NA levels in different transgenic lines were quantitatively correlated with increased nickel tolerance. The tolerance to nickel is expressed at the cellular level in protoplast experiments and is associated with an increased NA content. We have also shown that the most NA-over accumulating line showed a high tolerance to nickel and a significant Ni accumulation in the leaves when grown on nickel-contaminated soil. Our results highlight a new potential role for nicotianamine in heavy metal tolerance at the cellular but also at the whole plant level, easily transposable to a non-tolerant non-hyperaccumulator species. These results open new perspectives for the modulation of nicotianamine content in plants for phytoremediation.

Synthesis and Pharmacological Activity of N-[β-(para-substituted benzoyl)ethyl]isoleucine and -Methionine

A series of N-[β-(p-substituted benzoyl)ethyl]-isoleucine and -methionine derivatives have been synthesized via the alkylation of amino acids with p-substituted β-diethylaminopropiophenone hydrochlorides. Some of the synthesized compounds possess significant antiinflammatory activity.

Methionine and derivatives: Exploring chirality at sulfur

AbstractChiral molecules, both small and large, play important roles in biochemistry, molecular biology, and related biosciences. The central position of carbon atoms in determining chirality has received considerable attention. Less well known is the fact that chirality is also possible for sulfur atoms in certain compounds. This article introduces the role of sulfur chirality in metabolic reactions by considering methionine derivatives with chiral sulfur atoms, S‐adenosylmethionine and its decarboxylated product, methionine S‐oxide, and methionine sulfoximine.

Photoinitiating free-radical polymerization electron-transfer pairs applying amino acids and sulfur-containing amino acids as electron donors

A series of free-radical polymerization initiation systems, based on xanthene dyes as the absorbing chromophores [Rose bengal derivative, 3-(3-methylbutoxy)-5,7-diiodo-6-fluorone and 3-acetoxy-2,4,5,7-tetraiodo-6-fluorone] and sulfur-containing amino acids as the electron donors, were investigated. The photoredox pair xanthene dye/sulfur-containing amino acid was effectively used for photoinitiation of free-radical polymerization of the mixture composed of poly(ethylene glycol)diacrylate–1% NH4OH (3 : 1). The highest initiating efficiencies were observed for the system composed of methionine derivatives as the electron donor. The mechanism of photoinduced electron transfer between sulfur-containing amino acids and triplet state of xanthene dye was investigated using laser-flash and steady-state photolysis techniques. Based on photochemistry of xanthene dyes, photochemistry of sulfur-containing amino acids, and obtained results, the mechanism describing the major processes occurring during the photoinitiated polymerization by a photoinduced intermolecular electron-transfer process was postulated. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 97: 358–365, 2005

Hydrolysis of Nitriles Using an Immobilized Nitrilase: Applications to the Synthesis of Methionine Hydroxy Analogue Derivatives

Mild and selective hydrolysis of a large range of nitriles leading to carboxylic acids was achieved under neutral conditions by an immobilized and genetically modified enzyme preparation from Alcaligenes faecalis ATCC8750. This immobilized nitrilase has been shown to be an effective catalyst for the stereoselective hydrolysis of mandelonitrile 1a to R-(-)-mandelic acid 1c. This method is particularly useful for the production of hydroxy analogues of methionine derivatives 2c-4c that could have an interest in cattle feeding and for the transformation of compounds containing other acid- or base-sensitive groups 3a-10a. A series of aliphatic dinitriles 11a-15a was hydrolyzed to the corresponding cyano acids. The suitability of the immobilized catalyst as a robust and versatile biocatalyst is discussed, and models to account for the stereoselectivity of the enzymic hydrolysis have been proposed.

Oxidative addition of the C–O bond of amino acid esters to Rh(I) forming chelating acyl complexes

Esters of N-acylated amino acids and the sterically demanding phosphine 2-(di- ortho-tolylphosphino)phenol react within 1 h at room temperature with the Rh(I) centers of [Cl(μ-Cl)Rh(cyclooctene) 2] 2 to give products of oxidative addition of the ester carbonyl–O bond. The N-acyl carbonyl oxygen is bound to the Rh in these initial adducts, but is displaced upon addition of PMe 3, PhPMe 2, NH 2NMe 2, or the thioether function of a methionine derivative. Remarkably, both initial products from achiral amino acids and their ligand adducts are formed as single five-coordinate diastereomers in essentially quantitative yields. However, asymmetric induction by chiral amino acid derivatives of proline and phenylalanine on the stereochemistry at Rh was modest. Finally, the identities of infrared absorptions of acyl and amide groups in the complexes were established unequivocally by synthesis and spectroscopy of N-acetylglycine esters with a 13C label at either the ester or amide carbonyl group.

Glucosinolate biosynthesis: demonstration and characterization of the condensing enzyme of the chain elongation cycle in Eruca sativa

Glucosinolates are a group of sulfur-rich thioglucoside natural products common in the Brassicaceae and related plant families. The first phase in the formation of many glucosinolates involves the chain extension of the amino acid methionine. Additional methylene groups are inserted into the side chain of methionine by a three-step elongation cycle involving 2-oxo acid intermediates. This investigation demonstrated the first step of this chain elongation cycle in a partially-purified preparation from arugula ( Eruca sativa). The 2-oxo acid derived from methionine, 4-methylthio-2-oxobutanoic acid, was shown to condense with acetyl-CoA to form 2-(2′-methylthioethyl)malate. The catalyst, designated as a 2-(ω-methylthioalkyl)malate synthase, belongs to a family of enzymes that mediate the condensation of acyl-CoAs with 2-oxo acids, including citrate synthase of the citric acid cycle, and 2-isopropylmalate synthase of leucine biosynthesis. The 2-(ω-methylthioalkyl)malate synthase studied here shares properties with other enzymes of this class, but appears chromatographically distinct and is found only in extracts of plant species producing glucosinolates from chain-elongated methionine derivatives. Although the principal glucosinolates of arugula are formed from methionine that has undergone two rounds of chain elongation to form dihomomethionine, studies with substrates and substrate analogs of different chain lengths showed that the isolated enzyme is responsible only for the condensation step of the first round of elongation.

Hydrated metal(II) complexes of N-(6-amino-3,4-dihydro-3-methyl-5-nitroso-4-oxopyrimidin-2-yl) derivatives of glycine, glycylglycine, threonine, serine, valine and methionine: a monomeric complex and coordination polymers in one, two and three dimensions linked by hydrogen bonding.

Nine hydrated complexes of Group 2 (alkaline earth) cations with organic ligands which are N-substituted amino acids containing the 6-amino-3,4-dihydro-3-methyl-5-nitroso-4-oxopyrimidin-2-yl group have been structurally characterized. The octahydrated calcium glycinate complex, where the six-coordinate Ca cation lies on an inversion centre in the space group P(-)1, forms a finite (zero-dimensional) complex. The hexahydrated barium glycinate complex contains eight-coordinate Ba and it is isostructural with the known Sr analogue, and its one-dimensional coordination polymer takes the form of a simple chain. The octahydrated calcium and strontium threonine complexes are isostructural, with eight-coordinate cations lying on twofold rotation axes in the space group C2: the one-dimensional coordination polymers take the form of a chain of spiro-fused rings and a similar chain of spiro-fused rings is found in the heptahydrated barium serine complex, although here the ten-coordinate cation lies in a general position. In the tetrahydrated strontium and barium glycylglycinate complexes, the eight-coordinate cations lie on twofold rotation axes in the space group C2/c, but in the Sr complex the coordination polymer is a chain of spiro-fused rings, while in the Ba complex the coordination polymer forms deeply puckered sheets. There are two types of Ca site in the hexahydrated calcium valine complex: one is eight coordinate and gives rise to a two-dimensional coordination polymer, while the other is seven coordinate forming a finite, zero-dimensional coordination complex. In the heptahydrated barium methionine complex, the coordination polymer is three dimensional. In all of the complexes, the coordination aggregates are further linked by an extensive series of hydrogen bonds.

Comparison of different chloroformates for the derivatisation of seleno amino acids for gas chromatographic analysis

Three chloroformate reagents, ethyl chloroformate (ECF), methyl chloroformate (MCF) and menthyl chloroformate (MenCF), have been used for the derivatisation of seleno amino acids and their performance was compared. Chromatographic parameters and the inertness of the different instrumental configurations used (gas chromatography–atomic emission detection (GC–AED), and GC–MS) were shown to have a significant influence on the detection of various seleno amino acids (selenomethione, selenoethione and selenocysteine) and some sulphur-containing amino acids (methionine, cysteine, cystine and methylcysteine) which were included in the experiments for comparison. Methyl chloroformate was the preferred derivatisation reagent, since it generally performed best in terms of derivatisation yield and reproducibility and also showed less significant conditioning effects than ethyl chloroformate. Methyl and ethyl chloroformate derivatives of selenomethionine, selenoethionine, cysteine and methionine were detectable, while the detection of the menthyl chloroformate derivatives of selenocystine and cystine was not reproducible. Overall efficiencies for the determination of selenomethionine and selenoethionine from aqueous extracts ranged from 40 to 100% for methyl chloroformate, over 30–75% for ethyl chloroformate to 15–70% for menthyl chloroformate for different series measured over a period of months. The relative standard deviation of the method for the methyl and menthyl chloroformate derivatisation ranged from 7 to 13% without internal standard and was improved to 2% for the determination of selenomethionine using selenoethionine as internal standard. This indicates that, despite the limited reproducibility of the method, its repeatability is good enough to allow accurate determination of seleno amino acids, which was also demonstrated by the analysis of selenium supplementation tablets for human diet that contained selenomethionine.

Synthesis and activity of analogues of the isoleucyl tRNA synthetase inhibitor SB-203207

Twenty two analogues of SB-203207 have been prepared by total synthesis, and evaluated as inhibitors of a range of tRNA synthetases. Changes to the bicyclic core, removing either the terminal amino substituent or the sulfonyl group from the side chain, and altering either the carbon skeleton or stereochemistry of the isoleucine residue, decreases the potency of inhibition of isoleucyl tRNA synthetase. Substituting the isoleucine residue with other amino acids produces inhibitors of the corresponding synthetases. In particular, a methionine derivative is 50–100 times more potent against methionyl tRNA synthetase than against any of the corresponding isoleucyl, leucyl, valyl, alanyl and prolyl synthetases.

Chloroperoxidase‐Catalyzed Oxidation of Methionine Derivatives.

AbstractFor Abstract see ChemInform Abstract in Full Text.

Chloroperoxidase-catalyzed oxidation of methionine derivatives

Treatment of N-methoxycarbonyl C-carboxylate ester derivatives of L- and D-methionine and L-ethionine by chloroperoxidase–hydrogen peroxide resulted in oxidation at sulfur to produce the (RS) sulfoxide in moderate to high diastereomeric excess. The (RS) sulfoxide of methionine was also obtained in moderate to high diastereomeric excess from (±)SO-N-methoxycarbonyl-L-methionine methyl ester sulfoxide by ester hydrolysis using α-chymotrypsin, Aspergillus sp. protease or subtilisin Carlsberg. Key words: amino acid oxidation, biocatalysis, biotransformation, chloroperoxidase, enzyme catalysis, lipase, sulfoxidation.

L-Methionine-γ-lyase, as a Target to Inhibit Malodorous Bacterial Growth by Trifluoromethionine

Methyl mercaptan is a major component responsible for oral malodor. This compound arises from the bacterial metabolism of methionine. Here we show that the growth of Porphyromonas gingivalis, a periodontal microorganism that produces large amounts of methyl mercaptan, was strongly inhibited by l-trifluoromethionine (TFM), a fluorinated derivative of methionine. In contrast, TFM had no effect on the growth of bacteria which do not produce methyl mercaptan. In addition, the survival rate of P. gingivalis-infected mice was remarkably increased by the co-injection of TFM. These results suggest that TFM is a promising antibacterial agent specific to the malodorous oral bacteria.

Functional modeling of cobalamine-independent methionine synthase with pyrazolylborate-zinc-thiolate complexes.

A series of new pyrazolylborate-zinc-thiolate complexes Tp(Ph,Me)Zn-SR and Tp(Me,Me)Zn-SR, including two homocysteine derivatives, were prepared and structurally characterized. Their reactions with methyl iodide in nonpolar media resulted in the formation of the thioethers MeSR, including two methionine derivatives, and Tp(R',Me)Zn-I in all cases. Methylation of the thiolates could also be achieved with dimethyl sulfate and trimethylsulfonium iodide but not with trimethyl phosphate or N-methylpyridinium salts. The accumulated evidence indicates that the methylation occurs intramolecularly, i.e., at the zinc-bound thiolates: (i) The reactions occur readily in nonpolar media. (ii) Thiolate exchange at Tp(Ph,Me)Zn-SR with [PPN]SR' is slower than thiolate alkylation. (iii) The methylation of Tp(Ph,Me)Zn-SBn with MeI is a clean second-order reaction with k'' = 1.75 x 10(-2) M(-1) s(-1) at 300 K.

Inhibition and Structure-Activity Studies of Methionine Hydroxamic Acid Derivatives with Bacterial Peptide Deformylase

The posttranslational deformylation of N-formyl-Met-polypeptides by the metalloenzyme, peptide defomylase, is essential for bacterial growth. Methionine hydroxamic acid derivatives were found to inhibit recombinant Escherichia coli peptide deformylase activity containing either zinc or cobalt. The binding of methionine hydroxamate and hydrazide inhibitors to cobalt-substituted deformylase caused spectral changes consistent with the formation of a pentacoordinate metal complex similar to that of actinonin, a psuedopeptide hydroxamate inhibitor. The spectral and kinetic data support the binding of these N-substituted l -methionine derivatives in a reverse orientation with respect to N-formyl-Met-peptide substrates within the active site. Based on this hypothesis a second generation of N-substituted methionyl hydroxamic acids were evaluated and found to possess greater inhibitory potency. These results may provide the basis for the design of more potent and selective deformylase inhibitors as potential antibacterial agents.

High reactivity of alkyl sulfides towards epoxides under conditions of collagen fixation—a convenient approach to 2-amino-4-butyrolactones

Epoxy crosslinking agents have been investigated for use in the fabrication of bioprosthetic devices, such as heterograft heart valve prostheses. It has been generally assumed that epoxy crosslinking takes place via amino-epoxy reactions. The present study investigated the hypothesis that the reactions of methionine residues with epoxides also can occur in biomaterial crosslinking. A series of model reactions were studied in which a mono-epoxide was combined with individual alkyl sulfides. In the present studies epoxides rapidly alkylate aliphatic sulfides, including methionine derivatives, in buffered aqueous solutions at room temperature and pH close to neutral, forming sulfonium compounds, which are stable at pH 5–7 at temperatures up to 50°C, except for cases in which methionine derivatives with non-protected carboxy groups are used. The rate of reaction remains practically unchanged within the range of pH from 5 to 12, whereas in strongly alkaline media the reverse reaction occurs. This discovery can provide a better understanding of processes occurring in the fixation of bioprosthetic tissues with polyepoxides. It can also develop into a site-specific method to label methionine residues in proteins. The carboxy group-containing sulfonium betaines derived from N-protected methionines undergo cyclization in unexpectedly mild conditions, which can be used as an efficient method for preparation of N-protected 2-amino-4-butyrolactones with sensitive protective groups.

Ldl modified by hypochlorous acid is a potent inhibitor of lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase activity.

Modification of low density lipoprotein (LDL) by myeloperoxidase-generated HOCl has been implicated in human atherosclerosis. Incubation of LDL with HOCl generates several reactive intermediates, primarily N-chloramines, which may react with other biomolecules. In this study, we investigated the effects of HOCl-modified LDL on the activity of lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT), an enzyme essential for high density lipoprotein maturation and the antiatherogenic reverse cholesterol transport pathway. We exposed human LDL (0.5 mg protein/mL) to physiological concentrations of HOCl (25 to 200 micromol/L) and characterized the resulting LDL modifications to apolipoprotein B and lipids; the modified LDL was subsequently incubated with apolipoprotein B-depleted plasma (density >1.063 g/mL fraction), which contains functional LCAT. Increasing concentrations of HOCl caused various modifications to LDL, primarily, loss of lysine residues and increases in N-chloramines and electrophoretic mobility, whereas lipid hydroperoxides were only minor products. LCAT activity was extremely sensitive to HOCl-modified LDL and was reduced by 23% and 93% by LDL preincubated with 25 and 100 micromol/L HOCl, respectively. Addition of 200 micromol/L ascorbate or N-acetyl derivatives of cysteine or methionine completely prevented LCAT inactivation by LDL preincubated with </=200 micromol/L HOCl. Protecting the free thiol groups of LCAT with 5,5'-dithio-bis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) before exposure to HOCl-modified LDL, which inhibits lipid hydroperoxide-mediated inactivation of LCAT, failed to prevent the loss of enzyme activity. Our data indicate that N-chloramines from HOCl-modified LDL mediate the loss of plasma LCAT activity and provide a novel mechanism by which myeloperoxidase-generated HOCl may promote atherogenesis.