Synthesis of a cell-permeable analogue of a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) intermediate that is toxic to the living bloodstream form of Trypanosoma brucei

The synthesis of two cell-permeable analogues related to a GPI intermediate is described for studies with living trypanosomes and human (HeLa) cells. One of the analogues is metabolised by the former GPI pathway and is toxic to the parasite Trypanosoma brucei but not to human cells.