Convenient synthesis of rac-glycidaldehyde from rac-but-3-ene-1,2-diol and (R)-glycidaldehyde from D-mannitol are described. (R)-Glycidaldehyde (1) reacts with guanosine in water (pH 4-11, faster reaction at higher pH) to give initially 6(S)-hydroxy-7(S)-(hydroxymethyl)-3-(beta-D-ribofuranosyl)-5,6,7- trihydroimidazo[1,2-alpha]purin-9(3H)-one (7a) and 6(S),7(R)-dihydroxy-3-(beta-D-ribofuranosyl)-5,6,7,8- tetrahydropyrimido[1,2- alpha]purin-10(3H)-one (8a). The former decomposes to 7-(hydroxymethyl)-5,9-dihydro-9-oxo-3-(beta-D-ribofuranosyl)imidazo[1,2- alpha]purine (3a), 5,9-dihydro-9-oxo-3-(beta-D-ribofuranosyl)imidazo[1,2-alpha]purine (5a, 1,N2-ethenoguanosine), and formaldehyde, while the latter adduct is relatively stable. The position of the hydroxymethyl group on the imidazo ring of 7-(hydroxymethyl)-5,9-dihydro-9-oxo-3-(beta-D-ribofuranosyl)imidazo-[1,2 - alpha]purine was proved by 13C NMR analysis of adducts derived from [1-15N]guanosine and [amino-15N]guanosine. At longer reaction times, the adduct 7,7'-methylenebis[5,9-dihydro-9-oxo-3-(beta-D-ribofuranosyl)imidazo[1,2- alpha]purine (4a) is formed from guanosine and glycidaldehyde. The structure analysis of this adduct was also aided by 13C NMR analysis of the 15N-labeled adduct derived from [1-15N]guanosine. Analogous adducts were obtained from the reaction between glycidaldehyde and deoxyguanosine. Mechanisms of formation of the adducts from glycidaldehyde and guanosine/deoxyguanosine are proposed and supported by model studies with simple amines. The formaldehyde produced in the reactions described reacts with guanosine to give the known adduct N2-(hydroxymethyl)guanosine (9).

A series of O(6)-allyl- and O(6)-(2-oxoalkyl)guanines were synthesized and evaluated, in comparison with the corresponding O(6)-alkylguanines, as potential inhibitors of the DNA-repair protein O(6)-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT). Simple O(6)-alkyl- and O(6)-cycloalkylguanines were weak AGT inactivators compared with O(6)-allylguanine (IC(50) = 8.5 +/- 0.6 microM) with IC(50) values ranging from 100 to 1000 microM. The introduction of substituents at C-2 of the allyl group of O(6)-allylguanine reduced activity compared with the parent compound, while analogous compounds in the O(6)-(2-oxoalkyl)guanine series exhibited very poor activity (150-1000 microM). O(6)-Cycloalkenylguanines proved to be excellent AGT inactivators, with 1-cyclobutenylmethylguanine (IC(50) = 0.55 +/- 0.02 microM) and 1-cyclopentenylmethylguanine (IC(50) = 0.39 +/- 0.04 microM) exhibiting potency approaching that of the benchmark AGT inhibitor O(6)-benzylguanine (IC(50) = 0.18 +/- 0.02 microM). 1-Cyclopentenylmethylguanine also inactivated AGT in intact HT29 human colorectal carcinoma cells (IC(50) = 0.20 +/- 0.07 microM) and potentiated the cytotoxicity of the monomethylating antitumor agent Temozolomide by approximately 3- and 10-fold, respectively, in the HT29 and Colo205 tumor cell lines. The observation that four mutant AGT enzymes resistant to O(6)-benzylguanine also proved strongly cross-resistant to 1-cyclopentenylmethylguanine indicates that the O(6)-substituent of each compound makes similar binding interactions within the active site of AGT.