Alpha, beta- and beta, gamma-methylene 5'-phosphonate derivatives of 3'-azido-2',3'-dideoxythymidine-5'-triphosphate. Correlation between affinity for reverse transcriptase, susceptibility to hydrolysis by phosphodiesterases and anti-retrovirus activity.

A series of 5'-phosphorylated derivatives of 3'-azido-2',3'-dideoxythymidine (AzddThd), including AzddThd 5'-mono- and 5'-triphosphate, alpha, beta-methylene AzddThd-5'-diphosphate, alpha,beta-methylene AzddThd-5'-triphosphate, and beta,gamma-methylene AzddThd-5'-triphosphate, were evaluated for their cytostatic and anti-retrovirus properties, and their inhibitory effects on the reverse transcriptases of Moloney murine leukemia virus and human immunodeficiency virus. In contrast with the 5'-mono- and 5'-triphosphates of AzddThd, which showed cytostatic and anti-retrovirus activities comparable to those of AzddThd, the alpha,beta-methylene 5'-phosphonates of AzddThd were considerably less cytostatic and also much less inhibitory to cell transformation by Moloney murine sarcoma virus and cytopathogenicity of human immunodeficiency virus. The decreased biological activity of the phosphonate derivatives of AzddThd is most likely due to the resistance of these compounds to phosphorolytic attack by phosphodiesterases and phosphatases, and the reduced affinity for the retrovirus-associated reverse transcriptase.