Boranophosphate
Boranophosphates are synthetic modifications of nucleosides being studied as potential therapeutic and diagnostic agents.[1] They were first developed in the laboratories of Barbara Ramsay Shaw. The boranophosphate resembles the normal phosphate in that the negative charge is retained; however, the polarity of the molecule changes because the negative charge is localized on the remaining non-bridging oxygen.[2] Partitioning experiments have demonstrated that boranophosphates are more lipophilic than normal phosphates;[3] this could allow for increased cellular uptake and targeted delivery. In addition, boranophosphates have increased nuclease resistance without affecting activation of RNase H cleavage of RNA in RNA:boranophosphate hybrids.[3]