0000000000021811
AUTHOR
Richard A. Ferrieri
Dynamic Precision Phenotyping Reveals Mechanism of Crop Tolerance to Root Herbivory.
The western corn rootworm (WCR; Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte) is a major pest of maize (Zea mays) that is well adapted to most crop management strategies. Breeding for tolerance is a promising alternative to combat WCR but is currently constrained by a lack of physiological understanding and phenotyping tools. We developed dynamic precision phenotyping approaches using 11C with positron emission tomography, root autoradiography, and radiometabolite flux analysis to understand maize tolerance to WCR. Our results reveal that WCR attack induces specific patterns of lateral root growth that are associated with a shift in auxin biosynthesis from indole-3-pyruvic acid to indole-3-aceton…
Synthesis and PET studies of [11C-cyano]letrozole (Femara®), an aromatase inhibitor drug
Abstract Introduction Aromatase, a member of the cytochrome P 450 family, converts androgens such as androstenedione and testosterone into estrone and estradiol, respectively. Letrozole (1-[bis-(4-cyanophenyl)methyl]-1 H -1,2,4-triazole; Femara) is a high-affinity aromatase inhibitor ( K i =11.5 nM) that has Food and Drug Administration approval for breast cancer treatment. Here we report the synthesis of carbon-11-labeled letrozole and its assessment as a radiotracer for brain aromatase in the baboon. Methods Letrozole and its precursor (4-[(4-bromophenyl)-1 H -1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl]benzonitrile) were prepared in a two-step synthesis from 4-cyanobenzyl bromide and 4-bromobenzyl bromide,…
Use of gaseous 13NH3 administered to intact leaves of Nicotiana tabacum to study changes in nitrogen utilization during defence induction
Nitrogen-13 (t(1/2) 9.97 m), a radioactive isotope of nitrogen, offers unique opportunities to explore plant nitrogen utilization over short time periods. Here we describe a method for administering (13)N as gaseous (13)NH(3) to intact leaves of Nicotiana tabacum L. (cv Samsun), and measuring the labelled amino acids using radio high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) on tissue extract. We used this method to study the effects of defence induction on plant nitrogen utilization by applying treatments of methyl jasmonate (MeJA), a potent defence elicitor. MeJA caused a significant increase relative to controls in key [(13)N]amino acids, including serine, glycine and alanine by 4 h post-…
Synthesis of the phytohormone [11C]methyl jasmonate via methylation on a C18 Sep Pak? cartridge
[11C]labeled (±)-methyl jasmonate was synthesized using a C18 Sep Pak™ at ∼100°C to sustain a solid-supported 11C-methylation reaction of sodium (±)-jasmonate using [11C]methyl iodide. After reaction, the Sep Pak was rinsed with acetone to elute the labeled product, and the solvent evaporated rendering [11C]-(±)-methyl jasmonate at 96% radiochemical purity. The substrate, (±)-jasmonic acid, was retained on the Sep Pak so further chromatography was unnecessary. Total synthesis time was 25 min from the end of bombardment (EOB) which included 15 min to generate [11C]methyl iodide using the GE Medical Systems PET Trace MeI system, 5 min for reaction and extraction from the cartridge, and 5 min …
Synthesis of l -[4-11 C]Asparagine by Ring-Opening Nucleophilic 11 C-Cyanation Reaction of a Chiral Cyclic Sulfamidate Precursor
The development of a convenient and rapid method to synthesize radiolabeled, enantiomerically pure amino acids (AAs) as potential positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agents for mapping various biochemical transformations in living organisms remains a challenge. This is especially true for the synthesis of carbon-11-labeled AAs given the short half-life of carbon-11 (11 C, t1/2 =20.4 min). A facile synthetic pathway to prepare enantiomerically pure 11 C-labeled l-asparagine was developed using a partially protected serine as a starting material with a four-step transformation providing a chiral five-membered cyclic sulfamidate as the radiolabeling precursor. Its structure and absolute…
Inhibition of trehalose breakdown increases new carbon partitioning into cellulosic biomass in Nicotiana tabacum
Abstract Validamycin A was used to inhibit in vivo trehalase activity in tobacco enabling the study of subsequent changes in new C partitioning into cellulosic biomass and lignin precursors. After 12-h exposure to treatment, plants were pulse labeled using radioactive 11 CO 2 , and the partitioning of isotope was traced into [ 11 C]cellulose and [ 11 C]hemicellulose, as well as into [ 11 C]phenylalanine, the precursor for lignin. Over this time course of treatment, new carbon partitioning into hemicellulose and cellulose was increased, while new carbon partitioning into phenylalanine was decreased. This trend was accompanied by a decrease in phenylalanine ammonia-lyase activity. After 4 d o…
Optimizing [13N]N2 radiochemistry for nitrogen-fixation in root nodules of legumes
Here we explored the conditions for synthesizing [ 13 N]N 2 in a state that is suitable for the administration to plant root nodules enabling studies of nitrogen fixation. [ 13 N]N 2 was prepared batchwise, starting with [ 13 N]NO ― 3 from the 16 O(p,α) 13 N nuclear reaction on a liquid water target. [ 13 N]NO ― 3 was first reduced to [ 13 N]NH 3 using Devarda's alloy, and then the [ 13 N]NH 3 was oxidized to [ 13 N]N 2 by hypobromite using carrier-added NH 4 CI. The amounts of carrier NH 4 CI and hypobromite were varied to determine the effects these parameters had on the radiochemical yield, and on the radiotracer specific activity. As expected, increasing the amount of carrier NH 4 CI im…
PET Studies of d-Methamphetamine Pharmacokinetics in Primates: Comparison with l-Methamphetamine and (—)-Cocaine
The methamphetamine molecule has a chiral center and exists as 2 enantiomers, d-methamphetamine (the more active enantiomer) and l-methamphetamine (the less active enantiomer). d-Methamphetamine is associated with more intense stimulant effects and higher abuse liability. The objective of this study was to measure the pharmacokinetics of d-methamphetamine for comparison with both l-methamphetamine and (-)-cocaine in the baboon brain and peripheral organs and to assess the saturability and pharmacologic specificity of binding.d- and l-methamphetamine and (-)-cocaine were labeled with (11)C via alkylation of the norprecursors with (11)C-methyl iodide using literature methods. Six different ba…
Defense Priming in Nicotiana tabacum Accelerates and Amplifies ‘New’ C/N Fluxes in Key Amino Acid Biosynthetic Pathways
: In the struggle to survive herbivory by leaf-feeding insects, plants employ multiple strategies to defend themselves. One mechanism by which plants increase resistance is by intensifying their responsiveness in the production of certain defense agents to create a rapid response. Known as defense priming, this action can accelerate and amplify responses of metabolic pathways, providing plants with long-lasting resistance, especially when faced with waves of attack. In the work presented, short-lived radiotracers of carbon administered as 11CO2 and nitrogen administered as 13NH3 were applied in Nicotiana tabacum, to examine the temporal changes in &lsquo
Radiosynthesis of 3-indolyl[1-11C]acetic acid for phyto-PET-imaging: An improved production procedure and formulation method
Abstract An improved production procedure and formulation method for the carbon-11 radiolabeled phytohormone, 3-indolyl-[l- 11 C]acetic acid ([ 11 C]IAA), was developed by modifying selected original reaction parameters. This updated procedure both doubled the yield (from 25.9±6.7% ( n =12) to 61.0±0.3% ( n =10)) and increased the concentration (0.2–0.4 GBq/0.15–0.3 mL), enabling us to provide the radiotracer [ 11 C]IAA suitable for in vivo phyto-PET-imaging studies. The specific activity was improved by more than a factor of three (26.7±5.6 GBq/µmol to 82.5±36.1 GBq/µmol). The total synthesis time for both production and formulation was 81.8±3.0 min ( n =10). In addition, a streamlined sem…
CCDC 1415388: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination
Related Article: Youwen Xu, Aylin Sibel Cankaya, Ruma Hoque, So Jeong Lee, Colleen Shea, Lena Kersting, Michael Schueller, Joanna S. Fowler, David Szalda, David Alexoff, Barbara Riehl, Tassilo Gleede, Richard A. Ferrieri, Wenchao Qu|2018|Chem.-Eur.J.|24|6848|doi:10.1002/chem.201801029