Browsing by Subject "boron carriers"

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is an emerging cancer treatment method that is currently limited by suboptimal boron delivery strategies. A wide range of biomolecules have been investigated as potential tumor targeting boron carriers. Carbohydrates excel on several aspects by providing high solubility and low cytotoxicity. This work focuses on the synthesis of an orthogonally protected glycoconjugate for a GLUT1 targeting approach to BNCT. Knowledge of suitable glycoconjugate structures for this targeting strategy is emerging, and the aim of this work was to explore further functionalization of these structures, which will be necessary for future labeling of the boron carriers. The seven-step synthesis of an orthogonally protected mannopyranoside – and structural determination with NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry – is described in detail. The attachment of a boron cluster to the target molecule was performed, and early-stage fluorination trials were carried out. While important insights were obtained from these functionalization attempts, the functionalization of the target molecule will require some additional effort in the future. The protecting group strategies are currently being redesigned based on the information obtained through this work.