Octa(thymidine methanephosphonates) of partially defined stereochemistry: synthesis and effect of chirality at phosphorus on binding to pentadecadeoxyriboadenylic acid.

Block condensation of MePOCI2 or MeP(NEt2)2 with appropriately protected tetra(thymidine methanephosphonates) of predetermined sense of chirality at asymmetric phosphonate centres gave two pairs of diastereomeric mixtures, namely (SpSpSpSpSpSpSp + SpSpSpRpSpSpSp) 5a and (RpRpRpRpRpRpRp + RpRpRpSpRpRpRp) 5b. A comparison of the CD spectra of 5a and 5b with those of octathymidylic acid (7) and a random mixture of diastereomers of octa(thymidine methanephosphonate) (6), and also a comparison of the Tm of complexes formed between 5a, 5b, 6 or 7, and pentadecadeoxyriboadenylic acid (8), indicates that octamer 5b and its complex with its complementary oligonucleotide has a well-ordered structure due to the 'outward' or 'pseudoequatorial' orientation of the methyl group of each internucleotide methanephosphonate function of Rp configuration. Results presented in this report clearly indicate that the stability of hybrids formed between octa(thymidine methanephosphonate) and pentadecadeoxyriboadenylic acid depends on the stereochemistry of each internucleotide methanephosphonate function and strongly suggests that stereoselective synthesis of P-chiral oligonucleotide analogues is an important goal.