Synthesis and evaluation of 7-chloro-4-(piperazin-1-yl)quinoline-sulfonamide as hybrid antiprotozoal agents.

A new series of 4-aminochloroquinoline based sulfonamides were synthesized and evaluated for antiamoebic and antimalarial activities. Out of the eleven compounds evaluated (F1-F11), two of them (F3 and F10) showed good activity against Entamoeba histolytica (IC50 <5 µM). Three of the compounds (F5, F7 and F8) also displayed antimalarial activity against the chloroquine-resistant (FCR-3) strain of Plasmodium falciparum with IC50 values of 2 µM. Compound F7, whose crystal structure was also determined, inhibited ß-haematin formation more potently than quinine. To further understand the action of hybrid molecules F7 and F8, molecular docking was carried out against the homology model of P. falciparum enzyme dihydropteroate synthase (PfDHPS). The complexes showed that the inhibitors place themselves nicely into the active site of the enzyme and exhibit interaction energy which is in accordance with our activity profile data. Application of Lipinski 'rule of five' on all the compounds (F1-F11) suggested high drug likeness of F7 and F8, similar to quinine.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel 4-substituted 1-{[4-(10,15,20-triphenylporphyrin-5-yl)phenyl]methylidene}thiosemicarbazides as new class of potential antiprotozoal agents.

A novel series of 4-substituted 1-{[4-(10,15,20-triphenylporphyrin-5-yl)phenyl]methylidene}thiosemicarbazide, 4a-4n, was synthesized in 9-21% yield by the condensation of 4-(10,15,20-triphenylporphyrin-5-yl)benzaldehyde (3) with various substituted thiosemicarbazides in presence of catalytic amount of AcOH. These compounds were assayed for in vitro antiamoebic activity, and the results showed that out of 14 compounds 9 were found with IC(50) values lower than metronidazole corresponding to 1.05- to 4.7-fold increase in activity. MTT Assay showed that all the compounds are nontoxic to human kidney epithelial cell line. 4-(m-Toluidinyl)-1-{[4-(10,15,20-triphenylporphyrin-5-yl)phenyl]methylidene}thiosemicarbazide (4h) showed the highest antiamoebic activity with least cytotoxicity. Some of the compounds were screened for their antimalarial activities and ability to inhibit beta-haematin formation, but none of them showed an activity better than chloroquine and quinine. Only one compound out of six showed an activity comparable to standard drug.

Naturally occurring cobalamins have antimalarial activity.

The acquisition of resistance by malaria parasites towards existing antimalarials has necessitated the development of new chemotherapeutic agents. The effect of vitamin B(12) derivatives on the formation of beta-haematin (synthetic haemozoin) was determined under conditions similar to those in the parasitic food vacuole (using chloroquine, a known inhibitor of haemozoin formation for comparison). Adenosylcobalamin (Ado-cbl), methylcobalamin (CH(3)-cbl) and aquocobalamin (H(2)O-cbl) were approximately forty times more effective inhibitors of beta-haematin formation than chloroquine, cyanocobalamin (CN-cbl) was slightly more inhibitory than chloroquine, while dicyanocobinamide had no effect. It is proposed that the cobalamins exert their inhibitory effect on beta-haematin formation by pi-interactions of their corrin ring with the Fe(III)-protoporphyrin ring and by hydrogen-bonding using their 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole/ribose/sugar side-chain. The antimalarial activity for the cobalamins (Ado-cbl>CH(3)-cbl>H(2)O-cbl>CN-cbl) was found to be less than that for chloroquine or quinine. Ado-cbl, CH(3)-cbl and CN-cbl do not accumulate in the parasite food vacuole by pH trapping, but H(2)O-cbl does. Unlike humans, the malaria parasite has only one enzyme that uses cobalamin as a cofactor, namely methionine synthase, which is important for growth and metabolism. Thus cobalamins in very small amounts are necessary for Plasmodium falciparum growth but in larger amounts they display antimalarial properties.