Testing broad-spectrum and isoform-preferring HCN channel blockers for anticonvulsant properties in mice.

Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels have been implicated in the pathogenesis of epilepsy and consequently as targets for anticonvulsant drugs. Consistent with this, broad-spectrum block of HCN-mediated current (Ih) reduces seizure susceptibility in a variety of epilepsy models. However, HCN channel isoforms have distinct biophysical characteristics and anatomical expression suggesting that they may play different roles in setting neuronal excitability. Here we confirm that the broad-spectrum blocker ivabradine is effective at reducing seizure susceptibility in the s.c.PTZ seizure assay and extend this, showing efficacy of this drug in a thermogenic assay that models febrile seizures. Ivabradine is also effective at reducing thermogenic seizures in the Scn1a mouse model of Dravet syndrome in which febrile seizures are a feature. HCN isoform-preferring drugs were tested in the s.c.PTZ seizure assay. We confirm that the HCN4-preferring drug, EC18, is efficacious in reducing seizure susceptibility. Conversely, the HCN2/1-preferring drug, MEL55A, increased seizure susceptibility in the s.c.PTZ seizure assay. MEL57A, an HCN1-preferring drug, had no effect on seizure susceptibility. Mouse pharmacokinetic studies (for MEL55A and MEL57A) and screening against additional ion channels have not been thoroughly investigated on the HCN isoform-preferring compounds. Our results need to be considered in this light. Nevertheless, these data suggest that HCN isoform-selective block can have a differential impact on seizure susceptibility. This motivates the need to develop more HCN isoform-selective compounds to better explore this idea.

The hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated 4 channel as a potential anti-seizure drug target.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels are encoded by four genes (HCN1-4) with distinct biophysical properties and functions within the brain. HCN4 channels activate slowly at robust hyperpolarizing potentials, making them more likely to be engaged during hyperexcitable neuronal network activity seen during seizures. HCN4 channels are also highly expressed in thalamic nuclei, a brain region implicated in seizure generalization. Here, we assessed the utility of targeting the HCN4 channel as an anti-seizure strategy using pharmacological and genetic approaches. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: The impact of reducing HCN4 channel function on seizure susceptibility and neuronal network excitability was studied using an HCN4 channel preferring blocker (EC18) and a conditional brain specific HCN4 knockout mouse model. KEY RESULTS: EC18 (10 mg·kg-1 ) and brain-specific HCN4 channel knockout reduced seizure susceptibility and proconvulsant-mediated cortical spiking recorded using electrocorticography, with minimal effects on other mouse behaviours. EC18 (10 µM) decreased neuronal network bursting in mouse cortical cultures. Importantly, EC18 was not protective against proconvulsant-mediated seizures in the conditional HCN4 channel knockout mouse and did not reduce bursting behaviour in AAV-HCN4 shRNA infected mouse cortical cultures. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: These data suggest the HCN4 channel as a potential pharmacologically relevant target for anti-seizure drugs that is likely to have a low side-effect liability in the CNS.

Central nicotinic receptors: structure, function, ligands, and therapeutic potential.

The growing interest in nicotinic receptors, because of their wide expression in neuronal and non-neuronal tissues and their involvement in several important CNS pathologies, has stimulated the synthesis of a high number of ligands able to modulate their function. These membrane proteins appear to be highly heterogeneous, and still only incomplete information is available on their structure, subunit composition, and stoichiometry. This is due to the lack of selective ligands to study the role of nAChR under physiological or pathological conditions; so far, only compounds showing selectivity between alpha4beta2 and alpha7 receptors have been obtained. The nicotinic receptor ligands have been designed starting from lead compounds from natural sources such as nicotine, cytisine, or epibatidine, and, more recently, through the high-throughput screening of chemical libraries. This review focuses on the structure of the new agonists, antagonists, and allosteric ligands of nicotinic receptors, it highlights the current knowledge on the binding site models as a molecular modeling approach to design new compounds, and it discusses the nAChR modulators which have entered clinical trials.

Rigid analogs of DMPP as probes for the nicotinic receptors.

Chemical manipulation of the nicotinic agonist DMPP, endowed with modest activity on the central receptors, definitely improved its affinity and pharmacokinetic properties. Although their pharmacophore is somehow different from that of classical nicotinic ligands, some DMPP derivatives show low nanomolar affinity for the central nicotinic receptors. Introduction of rigidity in the structure of DMPP and in that of its analogue 1-(3-pyridyl)piperazine, resulted in molecules with lower or null affinity for the central nicotinic receptors. This suggests that the frozen structures chosen either do not represent the bioactive conformation, or their volume is not compatible with the space available within the interaction site.

Design of novel nicotinic ligands through 3D database searching.

A series of quinoline derivatives have been designed on the basis of results from a 3D search of the Cambridge Structural Database using the nicotinic pharmacophore as a query and further modified using molecular modeling. Some of the synthesized compounds show nanomolar affinity for the central nicotinic receptor on rat cerebral cortex.

GRIND-derived pharmacophore model for a series of alpha-tropanyl derivative ligands of the sigma-2 receptor.

A pharmacophore model for the sigma-2 receptor was derived using GRIND (GRid INdependent Descriptors) descriptors arising from a 3D-level procedure whose main prerogative is that it does not require ligand alignment. PLS models for sigma-2 affinity (sigma-2 model: r2=0.83, q2=0.63) and sigma-1/sigma-2 selectivity (r2=0.72, q2=0.46) were derived using a series of alpha-tropanyl derivatives. The models provide pictures of the virtual receptor site (VRS) significant enough to attain a qualitative pharmacophoric representation of the sigma receptor. They give the internal geometrical relationships within two hydrophobic areas (hydrophobic-1 and -2) and a H-bond donor receptor region with which ligands establish non-covalent bonds.

Cholinergic nicotinic receptors: competitive ligands, allosteric modulators, and their potential applications.

Discovery of the important role played by nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in several CNS disorders has called attention to these membrane proteins and to ligands able to modulate their functions. The existence of different subtypes at multiple levels has complicated the understanding of this receptor's physiological role, but at the same time has increased the efforts to discover selective compounds in order to improve the pharmacological characterization of this kind of receptor and to make the possible therapeutical use of its modulators safer. This review focuses on the structure of new ligands for nAChRs, agonists, antagonists and allosteric modulators, and on their possible applications.