Converting maslinic acid into an effective inhibitor of acylcholinesterases.

During the last decade, maslinic acid has been evaluated for many biological properties, e.g. as an anti-tumor or an anti-viral agent but also as a nutraceutical. The potential of maslinic acid and related derivatives to act as inhibitors of acetyl- or butyryl-cholinesterase was examined in this communication in more detail. Cholinesterases do still represent an interesting group of target enzymes with respect to the investigation and treatment of the Alzheimer's disease and other dementia illnesses as well. Although other triterpenoic acids have successfully been tested for their ability to act as inhibitors of cholinesterases, up to now maslinic acid has not been part of such studies. For this reason, three series of maslinic acid derivatives possessing modifications at different centers were synthesized and subjected to Ellman's assay to determine their inhibitory strength and type of inhibitory action. While parent compound maslinic acid was no inhibitor in these assays, some of the compounds exhibited an inhibition of acetylcholinesterase in the single-digit micro-molar range. Two compounds were identified as inhibitors of butyrylcholinesterase showing inhibition constants comparable to those of galantamine, a drug often used in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Furthermore, additional selectivity as well as cytotoxicity studies were performed underlining the potential of several derivatives and qualifying them for further investigations. Docking studies revealed that the different kinetic behavior within the same compound series may be explained by the ability of the compounds to enter the active site gorge of AChE.

The bile acid-sensitive ion channel (BASIC) is activated by alterations of its membrane environment.

The bile acid-sensitive ion channel (BASIC) is a member of the DEG/ENaC family of ion channels. Channels of this family are characterized by a common structure, their physiological functions and modes of activation, however, are diverse. Rat BASIC is expressed in brain, liver and intestinal tract and activated by bile acids. The physiological function of BASIC and its mechanism of bile acid activation remain a puzzle. Here we addressed the question whether amphiphilic bile acids activate BASIC by directly binding to the channel or indirectly by altering the properties of the surrounding membrane. We show that membrane-active substances other than bile acids also affect the activity of BASIC and that activation by bile acids and other membrane-active substances is non-additive, suggesting that BASIC is sensitive for changes in its membrane environment. Furthermore based on results from chimeras between BASIC and ASIC1a, we show that the extracellular and the transmembrane domains are important for membrane sensitivity.

Amino derivatives of glycyrrhetinic acid as potential inhibitors of cholinesterases.

The development of remedies against the Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the biggest challenges in medicinal chemistry nowadays. Although not completely understood, there are several strategies fighting this disease or at least bringing some relief. During the progress of AD, the level of acetylcholine (ACh) decreases; hence, a therapy using inhibitors should be of some benefit to the patients. Drugs presently used for the treatment of AD inhibit the two ACh controlling enzymes, acetylcholinesterase as well as butyrylcholinesterase; hence, the design of selective inhibitors is called for. Glycyrrhetinic acid seems to be an interesting starting point for the development of selective inhibitors. Although its glycon, glycyrrhetinic acid is known for being an AChE activator, several derivatives, altered in position C-3 and C-30, exhibited remarkable inhibition constants in micro-molar range. Furthermore, five representative compounds were subjected to three more enzyme assays (on carbonic anhydrase II, papain and the lipase from Candida antarctica) to gain information about the selectivity of the compounds in comparison to other enzymes. In addition, photometric sulforhodamine B assays using murine embryonic fibroblasts (NiH 3T3) were performed to study the cytotoxicity of these compounds. Two derivatives, bearing either a 1,3-diaminopropyl or a 1H-benzotriazolyl residue, showed a BChE selective inhibition in the single-digit micro-molar range without being cytotoxic up to 30µM. In silico molecular docking studies on the active sites of AChE and BChE were performed to gain a molecular insight into the mode of action of these compounds and to explain the pronounced selectivity for BChE.