Publications by authors named "Alexey P Kostikov"

A novel prosthetic group for the efficient radiolabeling of macromolecules has been developed. [F]oxadibenzocyclooctyne ([F]ODIBO) is synthesized in high radiochemical yield and applied for nearly quantitative conjugation to azide-tagged peptides and proteins at room temperature and low substrate concentrations. The resulting bioconjugates are chemically and radiochemically pure and free of toxic solvents and catalysts.

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The perception of aversive stimuli is essential for human survival and depends largely on environmental context. Although aversive brain processing has been shown to involve the sensorimotor cortex, the neural and biochemical mechanisms underlying the interaction between two independent aversive cues are unclear. Based on previous work indicating ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) involvement in the mediation of context-dependent emotional effects, we hypothesized a central role for the vmPFC in modulating sensorimotor cortex activity using a GABAergic mechanism during an aversive-aversive stimulus interaction.

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Proteins previously derivatized with the cross-coupling reagent sulfo-SMCC (4-(N-maleimidomethyl)cyclohexane-1-carboxylic acid 3-sulfo-N-hydroxy-succinimide ester sodium salt) can be easily labeled in high radiochemical yields with the silicon-fluoride acceptor (SiFA) reagent [(18)F]SiFA-SH, obtained via isotopic exchange, by thiol-maleimide coupling chemistry (n = 10). The specific activity of SiFA-SH obtained in a one-step labeling reaction was > 18.5 GBq μmol(-1) (> 500 Ci mmol(-1)).

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N-Succinimidyl 3-(di-tert-butyl[(18)F]fluorosilyl)benzoate ([(18)F]SiFB) is a highly reactive prosthetic group for radiolabeling of proteins for use in positron emission tomography (PET). It is similar to N-succinimidyl-4-[(18)F]fluorobenzoate ([(18)F]SFB), the 'gold-standard' prosthetic group for protein (18)F-labeling, but can be synthesized using a much shorter and technically easier procedure. A recently reported simple procedure to obtain anhydrous (18)F- by avoiding time-consuming azeotropic drying is applied with a slight modification to prevent basic hydrolysis of the active N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) ester moiety of [(18)F]SiFB.

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Here we present a procedure to label peptides with the positron-emitting radioisotope fluorine-18 ((18)F) using the silicon-fluoride acceptor (SiFA) labeling methodology. Positron emission tomography (PET) has gained high importance in noninvasive imaging of various diseases over the past decades, and thus new specific imaging probes for PET imaging, especially those labeled with (18)F, because of the advantageous properties of this nuclide, are highly sought after. N-terminally SiFA-modified peptides can be labeled with (18)F(-) in one step at room temperature (20-25 °C) or below without forming side products, thereby producing satisfactory radiochemical yields of 46 ± 1.

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Awareness is an essential feature of the human mind that can be directed internally, that is, toward our self, or externally, that is, toward the environment. The combination of internal and external information is crucial to constitute our sense of self. Although the underlying neuronal networks, the so-called intrinsic and extrinsic systems, have been well-defined, the associated biochemical mechanisms still remain unclear.

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N-Succinimidyl 3-(di-tert-butyl[(18)F]fluorosilyl)benzoate ([(18)F]SiFB), a novel synthon for one-step labeling of proteins, was synthesized via a simple (18)F-(19)F isotopic exchange. A new labeling technique that circumvents the cleavage of the highly reactive active ester moiety under regular basic (18)F-labeling conditions was established. In order to synthesize high radioactivity amounts of [(18)F]SiFB, it was crucial to partially neutralize the potassium oxalate/hydroxide that was used to elute (18)F(-) from the QMA cartridge with oxalic acid to prevent decomposition of the active ester moiety.

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N-Terminally azido-modified peptides were labeled with the novel prosthetic labeling synthon [(18)F]azadibenzocyclooctyne ([(18)F]ADIBO) using copper-free azide-alkyne [3+2]-dipolar cycloaddition in high radiochemical yields (RCYs). (18)F-Labeled [(18)F]ADIBO was prepared by nucleophilic substitution of the corresponding tosylate in 21% overall RCY (EOB) in a fully automated synthesis unit within 55 min. [(18)F]ADIBO was incubated with azide-containing peptides at room temperature in the absence of toxic metal catalysts and the formation of the triazole conjugate was confirmed.

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This Perspective outlines the stereochemical and mechanistic complexities inherent in the thermal reactions converting vinylcyclobutane to cyclohexene, butadiene, and ethylene. The structural isomerization and the fragmentation processes seem, at first sight, to be obvious and simple. When considered more carefully and investigated with the aid of deuterium-labeled stereochemically well-defined vinylcyclobutane derivatives there emerges a complex kinetic situation traced by 56 structure-to-structure transformations and 12 independent kinetic parameters.

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Making distinctions between two stereoisomers characterized by diastereotopic deuterium atoms can ordinarily be achieved using standard NMR spectroscopic methods. Mixtures of stereoisomers having both diastereotopic and enantiotopic deuterium labels, however, may be difficult to analyze quantitatively. The present work introduces a simple way to gain quantitative analyses of mixtures of the four stereoisomeric 2-deuterio-1-vinylcyclobutanes, an essential prerequisite to establishing the stereochemical characteristics of the thermal stereomutations of vinylcyclobutane and its structural isomerizations to cyclohexene.

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The challenging analytical problem posed by mixtures of the four isomeric 3,4-d(2)-cyclohexenes and the three isomeric 3,6-d(2)-cyclohexenes has been solved through a novel one-dimensional NMR spectroscopic method dependent on recording (13)C resonances while broadband decoupling both proton and deuteron nuclei. Upfield deuterium perturbations of (13)C chemical shifts in chair conformationally locked cyclohexane derivatives readily secured from a mixture of the seven deuterium-labeled cyclohexenes allow quantitative analytical assessments of the four possible 3,4-d(2)-cyclohexenes in the mixture. This analytical capability is an essential prerequisite for uncovering the relative participations of the four possible stereochemical paths followed by the thermal structural isomerizations of vinylcyclobutane to cyclohexene.

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Aldehydes and ketones caged as 4-(2,5-dihydroxyphenyl)-1,3-dioxolanes are efficiently (Phi = 0.1-0.2) released in a good to excellent chemical yield upon irradiation with 300 nm light.

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1,2- and 1,3-diols, including carbohydrates, can be readily caged as acetals of 5-methoxy- or 5-hydroxysalicylaldehydes. Irradiation of these acetals with 300 nm light results in their efficient (Phi = 0.2-0.

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Irradiation of alcohols, phenols, and carboxylic acids "caged" with the 2,5-dihydroxybenzyl group or its naphthalene analogue results in the efficient release of the substrate. The initial byproduct of the photoreaction, 4-hydroxyquinone-2-methide, undergoes rapid tautomerization into methyl p-quinone. The UV spectrum of the latter is different from that of the caging chromophore, thus permitting selective irradiation of the starting material in the presence of photochemical products.

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