Design, Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of New 1, 4-Dihydropyridine (DHP) Derivatives as Selective Cyclooxygenase-2 Inhibitors.

As a continuous research for discovery of new COX-2 inhibitors, chemical synthesis, in vitro biological activity and molecular docking study of a new group of 1, 4-dihydropyridine (DHP) derivatives were presented. Novel synthesized compounds possessing a COX-2 SO2Me pharmacophore at the para position of C-4 phenyl ring, different hydrophobic groups (R1) at C-2 position and alkoxycarbonyl groups (COOR2) at C-3 position of 1, 4-dihydropyridine, displayed selective inhibitory activity against COX-2 isozyme. Among them, compound 5e was identified as the most potent and selective COX-2 inhibitor with IC50 value of 0.30 µM and COX-2 selectivity index of 92. Molecular docking study was performed to determine probable binding models of compound 5e. The study showed that the p-SO2Me-phenyl fragment of 5e inserted inside secondary COX-2 binding site (Arg(513), Phe(518), Gly(519), and His(90)). The structure-activity relationships acquired reveal that compound 5e with methyl and ethoxycarbonyl as R1 and COOR2 substitutions has the necessary geometry to provide selective inhibition of the COX-2 isozyme and it can be a good basis for the development of new hits.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of 5-oxo-1,4,5,6,7,8 hexahydroquinoline derivatives as selective cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors.

A group of regioisomeric 5-oxo-1,4,5,6,7,8 hexahydroquinoline derivatives possessing a COX-2 SO2Me pharmacophore at the para position of the C-2 or C-4 phenyl ring, in conjunction with a C-4 or C-2 phenyl (4-H) or substituted-phenyl ring (4-F,4-Cl,4-Br,4-OMe,4-Me, 4-NO2), were designed for evaluation as selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors. These target 5-oxo-1,4,5,6,7,8 hexahydroquinolines were synthesized via a Hansch condensation reaction. In vitro COX-1/COX-2 isozyme inhibition structure-activity studies identified 7,8-dihydro- 7,7-dimethyl-2-(4-methoxyphenyl)-4-(4-(methylsulfonyl)phenyl)quinolin-5(1H,4H,6H)- one (9c) as a potent COX-2 inhibitor (IC50 = 0.17 M) with a high COX-2 selectivity index (S.I. = 97.6) comparable to the reference drug celecoxib (COX-2 IC50 = 0.05 mM; COX-2 S.I= 405). A molecular modeling study where 9c was docked in active site of COX-2 showed that the p-SO2Me substituent on the C-2 phenyl ring is inserted into the secondary COX-2 binding site. The structure activity data acquired indicate that the position of the COX-2 SO2Me pharmacophore and type of substituent are important for COX-2 inhibitory activity.