J. Appl. Cryst.の発刊に際して

It has become evident that fluorinated compounds have a remarkable record in medicinal chemistry and will play a continuing role in providing lead compounds for therapeutic applications. This tutorial review provides a sampling of renowned fluorinated drugs and their mode of action with a discussion clarifying the role and impact of fluorine substitution on drug potency.

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Fluorine in medicinal chemistry.

The Cationminus signpi Interaction.

The role of fluorine in drug design and development is expanding rapidly as we learn more about the unique properties associated with this unusual element and how to deploy it with greater sophistication. The judicious introduction of fluorine into a molecule can productively influence conformation, pKa, intrinsic potency, membrane permeability, metabolic pathways, and pharmacokinetic properties. In addition, 18F has been established as a useful positron emitting isotope for use with in vivo imaging technology that potentially has extensive application in drug discovery and development, often limited only by convenient synthetic accessibility to labeled compounds. The wide ranging applications of fluorine in drug design are providing a strong stimulus for the development of new synthetic methodologies that allow more facile access to a wide range of fluorinated compounds. In this review, we provide an update on the effects of the strategic incorporation of fluorine in drug molecules and applications in po...

Applications of Fluorine in Medicinal Chemistry

Enzymes synthesized by hyperthermophiles (bacteria and archaea with optimal growth temperatures of >80°C), also called hyperthermophilic enzymes, are typically thermostable (i.e., resistant to irreversible inactivation at high temperatures) and are optimally active at high temperatures. These enzymes share the same catalytic mechanisms with their mesophilic counterparts. When cloned and expressed in mesophilic hosts, hyperthermophilic enzymes usually retain their thermal properties, indicating that these properties are genetically encoded. Sequence alignments, amino acid content comparisons, crystal structure comparisons, and mutagenesis experiments indicate that hyperthermophilic enzymes are, indeed, very similar to their mesophilic homologues. No single mechanism is responsible for the remarkable stability of hyperthermophilic enzymes. Increased thermostability must be found, instead, in a small number of highly specific alterations that often do not obey any obvious traffic rules. After briefly discussing the diversity of hyperthermophilic organisms, this review concentrates on the remarkable thermostability of their enzymes. The biochemical and molecular properties of hyperthermophilic enzymes are described. Mechanisms responsible for protein inactivation are reviewed. The molecular mechanisms involved in protein thermostabilization are discussed, including ion pairs, hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic interactions, disulfide bridges, packing, decrease of the entropy of unfolding, and intersubunit interactions. Finally, current uses and potential applications of thermophilic and hyperthermophilic enzymes as research reagents and as catalysts for industrial processes are described.

Hyperthermophilic Enzymes: Sources, Uses, and Molecular Mechanisms for Thermostability

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of wild-type and K272A mutant glutamate 1-semialdehyde aminotransferase from Synechococcus.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 3-aryltyramines as fragments binding to BACE-1 and BACE-2

The human transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (hTRPV4) ion channel plays a critical role in a variety of biological processes. Whilst the activation of hTRPV4 gating properties has been reported for a broad spectrum of stimuli, including synthetic 4α-phorbols, the molecular basis of the activation is poorly understood. Here we report the novel cryo-EM structure of the hTRPV4 determined in the presence of the archetypical phorbol acid agonist, 4α-PDD. Complementary mutagenesis experiments support the EM-identified binding site as well as allowing rationalization of disruptive mutants located outside of the 4α-PDD binding site. This work represents the first structural information of hTRPV4 in a ligand-induced open conformation. Together, our data reveal the underlying molecular mechanisms resulting in the opening of the central pore and ion-channel activation and provide a structural template for designing inhibitors targeting the open-state conformation of hTRPV4.

/pdf/cryo-em-structural-studies-of-the-agonist-complexed-human-omgq71cepc.pdf

Cryo-EM structural studies of the agonist complexed human TRPV4 ion-channel reveals novel structural rearrangements resulting in an open-conformation

The present invention is concerned with pseudopolymorphic forms of 1-(4-carbazolyloxy)-3-[2-(2-methoxyphenoxy)ethylamino]-2-propanole (carvedilol) or of optically active forms or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, processes for the preparation thereof and pharmaceutical compositions containing them.

Pseudopolymorphic forms of carvedilol

The invention is concerned with a novel polymorph of [6,7-Bis(2-methoxy-ethoxy)-quinazolin-4-yl]-(3-ethynyl-phenyl)amine hydrochloride. This polymorph exhibits superior properties compared to the previously known forms of [6,7-Bis(2-methoxy-ethoxy)-quinazolin-4-yl]-(3-ethynyl-phenyl)amine hydrochloride and can be used as medicament for the treatment of hyperproliferative disorders.

Michael Hennig

Papers

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of wild-type and K272A mutant glutamate 1-semialdehyde aminotransferase from Synechococcus.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 3-aryltyramines as fragments binding to BACE-1 and BACE-2

Cryo-EM structural studies of the agonist complexed human TRPV4 ion-channel reveals novel structural rearrangements resulting in an open-conformation

Pseudopolymorphic forms of carvedilol

Polymorph of {6,7-bis(2-methoxy-ethoxy)-quinazolin-4-yl}-(3e)