Reactive trityl derivatives: stabilised carbocation mass-tags for life sciences applications.

The rational design of novel triarylmethyl (trityl)-based mass tags (MT) for mass-spectrometric (MS) applications is described. We propose a "pK(R+) rule" to correlate the stability of trityl carbocations with their MS performance: trityls with higher pK(R+) values ionise and desorb better. Trityl blocks were synthesised that have high pK(R+) values and are stable in conditions of MS analysis; these MTs can be ionised by matrix as well as irradiation with a 337 nm nitrogen laser.

5-arylethynyl-2'-deoxyuridines: energy transfer and SNP-detection.

Energy transfer between different fluorescent 5-alkynyl-2' -deoxyuridines in complementary and mismatched duplexes was studied.

Fluorescent 5-alkynyl-2'-deoxyuridines: high emission efficiency of a conjugated perylene nucleoside in a DNA duplex.

Four fluorescent 5-alkynyl-2'-deoxyuridines were studied in DNA oligonucleotides and their duplexes. The fluorescence response to hybridization differs dramatically for nucleosides containing a perylene fluorochrome either conjugated or not conjugated to the nucleobase. The conjugated nucleoside, 5-(perylen-3-ylethynyl)-2'-deoxyuridine, shows enhanced long-wavelength emission in the DNA duplex, in contrast to the blue fluorescence of perylene on a flexible linker (in 5-[(perylen-3-yl)methoxyprop-1-ynyl]-2'-deoxyuridine), which is quenched upon duplex formation.

5-Arylethynyl-2'-deoxyuridines, compounds active against HSV-1.

Three new 5-arylethynyl-2'-deoxyuridines containing bulky aryls have been prepared and tested against HSV-1 in Vero cells. The introduction of a substituent in the phenyl group of an inactive compound, 5-phenylethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine, leads to the appearance of anti-HSV properties. The most active compounds are those containing a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon residue attached to the 5 position of 2'-deoxyuridine through a rigid triple bond.