IntroductionNeplanocin A (1) [1] is a carbocyclic nucleoside which is isolated from Ampullariella regularis and possesses excellent chemical and metabolic stability of the glycosidic bond ( Figure 21.1). Neplanocin A also exhibits potent biological activity such as antiviral and antitumor activities, which result from the inhibition of S-adenosyl-SAH hydrolase catalyzes the interconversion of SAH into adenosine and L-homocysteine [4], and inhibition of this enzyme leads to an accumulation of SAH and a negative inhibition of cellular S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM)-dependent methyltransferase ( Figure 21.2). As SAM-dependent methyltransferase is responsible for formation of the 5 0 -terminal methylated N 7 -methylguanosine cap of the mRNA in most animal-infecting viruses, SAH hydrolase is essential for viral replication [4, 5]. Thus, the inhibition of SAH hydrolase can exhibit a broad spectrum of antiviral activity [6].Neplanocin A is one of the most potent inhibitors of SAH hydrolase, and shows a strong antiviral activity against various RNA and DNA viruses. Neplanocin A inhibits SAH hydrolase by virtue of a cofactor-depleting mechanism [5,7,8], and is oxidized to its 3 0 -keto form by the enzyme-bound cofactor NAD þ , which is tightly bound to the reduced cofactor NADH, resulting in the depletion of NAD þ . However, despite its potent enzyme inhibitory activity, neplanocin A could not be developed as a clinically useful antiviral agent because it proved to be too toxic to the host cells. This toxicity was derived from the triphosphorylation of the 5 0 -hydroxyl group of neplanocin A by cellular kinases (including adenosine kinase [9, 10]), with the resultant triphosphate being incorporated into RNA and causing the inhibition of RNA synthesis [10].Aristeromycin (2) [11] is another natural product isolated from Streptomyces citricolor, and has a similar carbocyclic skeleton as neplanocin A, but is devoid of the C4 0 ¼C6 0 double bond. Like neplanocin A, aristeromycin also shows potent inhibitory activity against SAH hydrolase, but again also proved to be cytotoxic and could not be developed as an antiviral agent. The cellular toxicity of aristeromycin was Modified Nucleosides: in Biochemistry, Biotechnology and Medicine. Edited by Piet Herdewijn