Aldehyde oxidase catalysed oxidation of various quinolinium and related cations has been studied in vitro. Oxidation products were identified by comparison of their spectral and chromatographic characteristics with those of authentic compounds. The N-heterocyclic cations and quinolones used required synthesis. Incubation of N-methylquinolinium, N-methyl-7,8-benzoquinolinium and N-phenylquinolinium yielded the corresponding 2- and 4-quinolones simultaneously. The ratio of 2- to 4-quinolone formation was found to be species dependent; the proportion of 4-quinolone was greater with guinea pig enzyme than with rabbit enzyme. Incubation of N-methyl-4-methylquinolinium, N-methyl-4-phenylquinolinium and N-methylphenanthridinium produced the expected 2-quinolones. Cations substituted adjacent to the ring nitrogen, i. e. N-methyl-2- methylquinolinium, N-methyl-2-phenylquinolinium and N-phenyl-2-phenylquinolinium, were oxidised to the corresponding 4-quinolones. Kinetic constants were determined spectrophotometrically. The Km values obtained with rabbit enzyme ranged from 1.6 x 10-3 M for N-methylquinolinium to <10-5 M for N-phenyl-2-phenylquinolinium. Quaternary compounds were found to be better substrates than their non-quaternary counterparts, except for N-methylisoquinolinium and N-methylphenanthridinium. In general, guinea pig aldehyde oxidase was shown to have a greater affinity for N-heterocyclic cations than rabbit enzyme. The substrate binding site has been discussed in the light of the results outlined below. Oxidation of N-methyl-4-phenylquinolinium (to the 2-quinolone) was competitively inhibited by N-methyl-2-phenylquinolinium (which yields the 4-quinolone), indicating that both these cations interact at the same active site. The ratio of 2- to 4-quinolone production from N-methylquinolinium was constant under various conditions, including purification of the enzyme but changed at high pH or in the presence of N-methylphenanthridinium. Inhibition studies indicated that both quaternary and non-quaternary compounds act at the same site on the enzyme. Km and Vmax values for phthalazine, N-methyl-2-phenylquinolinium and N-methylquinolinium were determined over the pH range 5.4 to 10.2. In each case, results indicated that the enzyme has an ionisable group at the active site with a pK ca. 8. Aldehyde oxidase was shown to catalyse the dehydrogenation of the pseudobases 3,4-dihydro-4-hydroxy-3-methyl-2-quinazolinone and 3,4-dihydro- 4-hydroxy-3-methylquinazoline.

Aldehyde oxidase catalysed oxidation of various quinolinium and related cations has been studied in vitro. Oxidation products were identified by comparison of their spectral and chromatographic characteristics with those of authentic compounds. The N-heterocyclic cations and quinolones used required synthesis. Incubation of N-methylquinolinium, N-methyl-7,8-benzoquinolinium and N-phenylquinolinium yielded the corresponding 2- and 4-quinolones simultaneously. The ratio of 2- to 4-quinolone formation was found to be species dependent; the proportion of 4-quinolone was greater with guinea pig enzyme than with rabbit enzyme. Incubation of N-methyl-4-methylquinolinium, N-methyl-4-phenylquinolinium and N-methylphenanthridinium produced the expected 2-quinolones. Cations substituted adjacent to the ring nitrogen, i. e. N-methyl-2- methylquinolinium, N-methyl-2-phenylquinolinium and N-phenyl-2-phenylquinolinium, were oxidised to the corresponding 4-quinolones. Kinetic constants were determined spectrophotometrically. The Km values obtained with rabbit enzyme ranged from 1.6 x 10-3 M for N-methylquinolinium to <10-5 M for N-phenyl-2-phenylquinolinium. Quaternary compounds were found to be better substrates than their non-quaternary counterparts, except for N-methylisoquinolinium and N-methylphenanthridinium. In general, guinea pig aldehyde oxidase was shown to have a greater affinity for N-heterocyclic cations than rabbit enzyme. The substrate binding site has been discussed in the light of the results outlined below. Oxidation of N-methyl-4-phenylquinolinium (to the 2-quinolone) was competitively inhibited by N-methyl-2-phenylquinolinium (which yields the 4-quinolone), indicating that both these cations interact at the same active site. The ratio of 2- to 4-quinolone production from N-methylquinolinium was constant under various conditions, including purification of the enzyme but changed at high pH or in the presence of N-methylphenanthridinium. Inhibition studies indicated that both quaternary and non-quaternary compounds act at the same site on the enzyme. Km and Vmax values for phthalazine, N-methyl-2-phenylquinolinium and N-methylquinolinium were determined over the pH range 5.4 to 10.2. In each case, results indicated that the enzyme has an ionisable group at the active site with a pK ca. 8. Aldehyde oxidase was shown to catalyse the dehydrogenation of the pseudobases 3,4-dihydro-4-hydroxy-3-methyl-2-quinazolinone and 3,4-dihydro- 4-hydroxy-3-methylquinazoline.

G-quadruplex structures are found in important regions of the eukaryotic genome, such as telomeres and regulatory sequences of genes, and are likely to play important roles in regulation of biological events. The significant structural differences with duplex DNA make quadruplex DNA a very attractive target for anticancer drug design. The purpose of this study is to explore conformational space in a series of heterocyclic cations to discover novel structural motifs that can selectively bind and stabilize specific G-quadruplex arrangements. A variety of biophysical techniques such as thermal melting experiments, biosensor surface plasmon resonance, circular dichroism, fluorescence displacement assay and mass spectrometry were employed to evaluate the affinity of the compounds and their recognition properties. The screening of the molecules allowed the identification of not only selective G-quadruplex ligands but also potential quadruplex groove binders. These results can be useful for the development of new efficient telomerase inhibitors which are endowed with pharmacological activity.