Ryan Burmesch, “Synthesis of Human Cytomegalovirus Replication Inhibitors”
Mentor: Alexander Arnold, Chemistry & Biochemistry, Letters & Science (College of)
Poster #57
With the high rates of infection of Human Cytomegalovirus (HCMV), specifically in transplant recipients, congenitally infected infants, and immunocompromised individuals, there is a great need for new treatment options. The effects of HCMV can be severe, causing organ rejection, intellectual disabilities, and vision and hearing loss. The contribution of our work conducted at the Medical College of Wisconsin and UWM is to synthesize new molecules that can then undergo further study to test for inhibition of HCMV. Specific molecules are targeted by taking the parent molecule, MLS000108969, and modifying parts of the structure. The molecules will then be analyzed to determine how the alteration in the structure of MLS000108969 changes its ability to inhibit CMV replication to establish a structure-activity relationship. The synthesis of potential anti-HCMV inhibitors requires methodically combining reactants to form the desired product. The impurity of this product is then removed using techniques such as column chromatography. After purification, the product can be analyzed using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS). These methods are used to confirm the structure of the desired product and unknown compounds present in the sample. The end goal of this work is to build a library of newly synthesized compounds that can then be used for further cell-based studies. It is anticipated that one of these compounds will be able to be used as a new treatment option for individuals affected by HCMV. While in normal and healthy adults, HCMV infection is usually asymptomatic, certain populations as described before are vulnerable. The goal is to improve these individuals’ outcomes and quality of life.