title: New 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidin-5'-yl O-(4-hydroxyalkyl or -alkenyl or -alkylepoxide) carbonate prodrugs: synthesis and anti-HIV evaluation.
abstract: New 5'-O-carbonate prodrugs of zidovudine (AZT) have been synthesized in order to enhance its uptake by HIV-1 infected cells, to improve its anti-HIV potency, and to optimize the intramolecular cyclic rearrangement process related to the 5'-O-(4-hydroxybutyl) carbonate moiety. Evidence of this prodrug rearrangement was confirmed by comparison of the serum half-lives of the 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidin-5'-yl O-(4-hydroxyalkyl or -alkenyl or -alkylepoxide) carbonate prodrugs with our thermodynamic predictions. Interestingly, these 5'-O-carbonate prodrug series show increased anti-HIV potencies in conjunction with, or without, reduced cytotoxicity as compared to AZT that lead to a gain in selectivity indexes. The cytotoxicity of AZT could be reduced with these 5'-O-carbonate prodrug series by delaying the 5'-O-glucuronidation of AZT, which is one of the major limitations of AZT.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Chimie Biomoléculaire, Faculté des Sciences de Luminy, 163 avenue de Luminy, case 901, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vlieghe
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Clerc
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pannecouque
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Witvrouw
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: De Clercq
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Salles
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Kraus
mesh_terms: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004355:Drug Stability; D006801:Humans; D011355:Prodrugs / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D015215:Zidovudine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D011355:Prodrugs; D015215:Zidovudine