Anti-mycobacterial activity of thymine derivatives bearing boron clusters

A series of novel thymine derivatives bearing lipophilic, electron-neutral 1,2-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane, 1,12-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane or hydrophilic 7,8-dicarba-nido-undecaborate anions were synthesized. Synthesis was performed via copper(I)-catalysed Huisgen-Meldal-Sharpless 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of N(1)-propargylthymine or N(1),N(3)-bispropargylthymine to 1-(3-azidopropyl)-1,2-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane. The obtained compounds were tested in vitro against Mycobacterium tuberculosis thymidylate kinase (TMPKmt) and as inhibitors of mycobacteria growth in culture using both saprophytic Mycobacterium smegmatis (M. smegmatis) and pathogenic Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) strains. The most potent TMPKmt inhibitor in the series contained two negatively charged 7,8-dicarba-nido-undecaborate modifications at positions 1 and 3 of thymine (9) and exhibited a Ki value of 1.5 μM. The most potent inhibitors of mycobacteria growth was compound 5 with one electron-neutral 1,2-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane modification at position 1 of thymine, and compound 8 with two modifications, at position 1 and 3. Both compounds completely inhibited M. smegmatis proliferation at a concentration of 100 μg/mL (0.25 mM and 0.15 mM, respectively).