germanium and 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoic-acid

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are very harmful to dermal cells, and it is thus important to develop cosmetics that protect the skin from ROS and other stimuli. Repagermanium is a synthetic water-soluble organogermanium polymer, and in this study, we attempted to visualize the incorporation of germanium into normal human dermal fibroblasts (NHDFs) using isotope microscopy. In addition, the content of 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoic acid (THGP), a hydrolyzed monomer of repagermanium, in NHDFs was determined through liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), and the dose-dependent incorporation of THGP was confirmed. We then evaluated the preventive effects of THGP against ROS-induced NHDF death and confirmed the observed preventive effects through gene profiling and expression analysis. The addition of 0.59-5.9 mM THGP reduced cell death resulting from ROS damage caused by the reaction between xanthine oxidase and hypoxanthine and the direct addition of H

Topics: Cell Death; Cells, Cultured; Chromatography, Liquid; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Fibroblasts; Gene Expression Regulation; Germanium; Humans; Hydrolysis; Hypoxanthine; Interleukin-6; Isotope Labeling; Microscopy; Nuclear Receptor Subfamily 4, Group A, Member 2; Organometallic Compounds; Oxidative Stress; Propionates; Skin; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Xanthine Oxidase

Poly trans-[(2-carboxyethyl)germasesquioxane] (IUPAC name) is the most common water-soluble organic germanium compound. This compound is known as bis(carboxyethyl)germaniumsesquioxide and it is commonly called Ge-132; it is hydrolyzed to 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoic acid (THGPA) in water. We have developed a method for the quantification of THGPA in rat plasma, using a novel extraction method based on a reversible chemical conversion. THGPA in plasma is converted to 3-(trichlorogermyl)propanoic acid (TCGPA) under acidic conditions using concentrated hydrochloride, which is followed by extraction with chloroform. TCGPA is then converted back to THGPA through hydrolysis. The extraction recovery of this method is approximately 100%. Moreover, we synthesized deuterated Ge-132, which was used as an internal standard in our experiments. This method covers a linearity range of 0.01-5 μg/mL for concentrations of THGPA in plasma. The intra-day and inter-day precisions of the analysis are about 4.1%, and the accuracy is within ±2.6% at THGPA concentrations of 0.025, 0.25, and 2.5 μg/mL. The total run time is 5 min. Our method was successfully applied to a pharmacokinetic investigation following oral administration of Ge-132.

Topics: Animals; Calibration; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Germanium; Hydrolysis; Limit of Detection; Male; Organometallic Compounds; Propionates; Rats, Wistar; Reproducibility of Results; Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Poly-trans-[(2-carboxyethyl)germasesquioxane], Ge-132, is a water-soluble organic germanium compound with many reported physiological functions. The hydrolysate of Ge-132, 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoic acid, can interact with diol compounds; therefore, it can possibly interact with diol-containing sugar compounds, which have important physiological functions in sugar chains, glycoproteins, and glucolipids. In this study, we examined the interaction between sodium 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoate and monosaccharides using nuclear magnetic resonance. When 1,4-anhydroerythritol was mixed with sodium 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoate, a pattern of signals different from that obtained for each solute alone was observed. Some signals were broader, and novel signals with different chemical shifts appeared to originate from complex formation. Spectral observations for sodium 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoate and the sugar isomers of glucose and fructose indicated that sodium 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoate has a higher affinity for fructose (a ketose) than glucose (an aldose). Moreover, the β-furanosyl conformation of fructose was the structure that interacted most with sodium 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoate. These results demonstrate the ability of aqueous Ge-132 to form complexes with the cis-diol structures of saccharides. Thus, interactions among 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoic acid and the important biological sugar compounds might be implicated in the physiological function of Ge-132.

Topics: Germanium; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; Monosaccharides; Organometallic Compounds; Propionates; Water

In mammals, adrenaline and ATP are life-essential vicinal diol and cis-diol functional groups. Here, we show that interactions between a safe organogermanium compound and these cis-diol compounds have the potential to regulate physiological functions. In addition, we represent a possible new druggable target for controlling the action of cis-diol compounds.. We analyzed a single crystal structure of organogermanium 3-(trihydroxygermyl)propanoic acid (THGPA), a hydrolysate of safe Ge-132, in complex with catecholamine (adrenaline and noradrenaline), and evaluated the affinity between several cis-diol compounds and THGPA by NMR. An in vitro study using normal human epidermal keratinocytes was performed to investigate the inhibition of cis-diol compound-stimulated receptors by THGPA. At high concentration, THGPA inhibited the calcium influx caused by adrenaline and ATP.. This study demonstrates that THGPA can modify cis-diol-mediated cell-to-cell signaling.

Topics: Adenosine Triphosphate; Catecholamines; Cell Line; Crystallography, X-Ray; Epinephrine; Germanium; Humans; Hydrolysis; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; Models, Molecular; Organometallic Compounds; Propionates