A photoreactive, potent, competitive inhibitor of the human lysosomal neuraminidase in cultured skin fibroblasts has been prepared. The starting material, 2,3 dehydro-N-acetyl neuraminic acid methyl ester, was selectively tosylated at the C-9 position with tosyl chloride and subsequently peracetylated with acetic anhydride. The tosyl group was displaced with potassium thio acetate in dimethylformamide at 60 degrees C for 80 min. 4-fluoro-3-nitrophenylazide was incorporated by reaction with the thio acetate product and equimolar sodium methoxide in methanol followed by reacetylation. Base hydrolysis gave the final product, 9-S-(4-azido-2-nitrophenyl)-5-acetamido-2,6 anhydro-2,3,5,9-tetradeoxy-9-thio-D-glycero-D-galacto-non-2-enonic acid (W5). The yields at each step were 50-70%. Competitive inhibition kinetics were observed when W5 was tested with the fibroblast neuraminidase using 4-methylumbelliferyl-N-acetyl-neuraminic acid as substrate giving an apparent Ki of about 10 microM. These results suggest that the terminal hydroxyl group at C-9 may not be important in the recognition and binding of the substrate by the enzyme. Also, the compounds prepared here may be useful as photoaffinity probes or ligands for affinity chromatography for purification.