Synthesis, biologic effects, and biochemical properties of some 2'-azido- and 2'-amino-2'-deoxyarabinofuranosyl pyrimidines and purines.

Various 2'-azido- and 2'-aminoarabinofuranosyl purine and pyrimidine nucleosides have been synthesized. Among these, the derivatives of cytosine and of adenine inhibit the growth of some tumor cell lines in vitro and in vivo. 2'-Azidoarabinofuranosyl cytosine also interferes with the replication of herpes simplex virus types I and II. Whereas 2'-azidoara-C is resistant to deamination by a partially purified CdR deaminase from KB cells, the adenine derivatives are substrates for aminohydrolases partially purified from calf and mouse intestines. Both azido- and aminoara-C are phosphorylated by partially purified CdR kinases from leukemia L1210 and from human AML blast cells. The accumulated data encourage exploration of the clinical utility of the more potent of these analogues.