Isonitrile-responsive and bioorthogonally removable tetrazine protecting groups. 2020

Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
Department of Medicinal Chemistry , College of Pharmacy , University of Utah , Salt Lake City , 84112 , USA . Email: Raphael.franzini@utah.edu.

In vivo compatible reactions have a broad range of possible applications in chemical biology and the pharmaceutical sciences. Here we report tetrazines that can be removed by exposure to isonitriles under very mild conditions. Tetrazylmethyl derivatives are easily accessible protecting groups for amines and phenols. The isonitrile-induced removal is rapid and near-quantitative. Intriguingly, the deprotection is especially effective with (trimethylsilyl)methyl isocyanide, and serum albumin can catalyze the elimination under physiological conditions. NMR and computational studies revealed that an imine-tautomerization step is often rate limiting, and the unexpected cleavage of the Si-C bond accelerates this step in the case with (trimethylsilyl)methyl isocyanide. Tetrazylmethyl-removal is compatible with use on biomacromolecules, in cellular environments, and in living organisms as demonstrated by cytotoxicity experiments and fluorophore-release studies on proteins and in zebrafish embryos. By combining tetrazylmethyl derivatives with previously reported tetrazine-responsive 3-isocyanopropyl groups, it was possible to liberate two fluorophores in vertebrates from a single bioorthogonal reaction. This chemistry will open new opportunities towards applications involving multiplexed release schemes and is a valuable asset to the growing toolbox of bioorthogonal dissociative reactions.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries

Related Publications

Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
January 2023, Journal of controlled release : official journal of the Controlled Release Society,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
April 2001, Journal of the American Chemical Society,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
July 1999, The Journal of organic chemistry,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
March 1973, The Journal of organic chemistry,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
June 2013, Chembiochem : a European journal of chemical biology,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
September 2023, Organic & biomolecular chemistry,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
September 2023, Chemistry, an Asian journal,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
October 2004, Clinical chemistry,
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
January 2022, Chemical communications (Cambridge, England),
Julian Tu, and Dennis Svatunek, and Saba Parvez, and Hannah J Eckvahl, and Minghao Xu, and Randall T Peterson, and K N Houk, and Raphael M Franzini
January 1997, Molecular diversity,
Copied contents to your clipboard!