title: Potential antiradiation drugs containing no nitrogen, and related compounds.
abstract: Capabilities are reported of di- and higher sulfides (RSnR') terminated by sulfinate functions [-S(O)O-] for protecting mice against otherwise lethal effects of ionizing radiation. With the use of congeners, structure-activity correlations are developed for the effects of esterification of the sulfinate function, of changing the length of the chain of sulfur atoms, of reduction to a mercapto sulfinate, and of changing the substituents R and R' to chiral and other types of groups. Neither a trisulfide nor a sulfinate by itself was significantly radioprotective. The key requirement for radio-protection in the series appears to be the presence of a sulfur function (-Sn-) from which a thiol can be engendered by a neighboring-group effect of an electron-donating group; sulfoxide functions may afford alternatives to sulfinate functions as such neighboring groups. The relevance of structure-activity relations to the chemical and biological mechanisms involved in the radioprotective activities is discussed.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004220:Disulfides; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D014677:Pharmaceutical Vehicles; D011837:Radiation-Protective Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D013440:Sulfides
chemical_list: D004220:Disulfides; D014677:Pharmaceutical Vehicles; D011837:Radiation-Protective Agents; D013440:Sulfides