Coumarin-azasugar-benzyl conjugates as non-neurotoxic dual inhibitors of butyrylcholinesterase and cancer cell growth.

We have applied the copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction to prepare a library of ten coumarin-azasugar-benzyl conjugates and two phthalimide-azasugar-benzyl conjugates with potential anti-Alzheimer and anti-cancer properties. The compounds were evaluated as cholinesterase inhibitors, demonstrating a general preference, of up to 676-fold, for the inhibition of butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) over acetylcholinesterase (AChE). Nine of the compounds behaved as stronger BuChE inhibitors than galantamine, one of the few drugs in clinical use against Alzheimer's disease. The most potent BuChE inhibitor (IC50 = 74 nM) was found to exhibit dual activities, as it also showed high activity (GI50 = 5.6 ± 1.1 µM) for inhibiting the growth of WiDr (colon cancer cells). In vitro studies on this dual-activity compound on Cerebellar Granule Neurons (CGNs) demonstrated that it displays no neurotoxicity.

Synthesis and Luminescent Properties of s-Tetrazine Derivatives Conjugated with the 4H-1,2,4-Triazole Ring.

New derivatives obtained by the combination of unique 1,2,4,5-tetrazine and 4H-1,2,4-triazole rings have great application potential in many fields. Therefore, two synthetic few-step methodologies, which make use of commercially available 4-cyanobenzoic acid (method A) and ethyl diazoacetate (method B), were applied to produce two groups of the aforementioned heterocyclic conjugates. In both cases, the target compounds were obtained in various combinations, by introducing electron-donating or electron-withdrawing substituents into the terminal rings, together with aromatic or aliphatic substituents on the triazole nitrogen atom. Synthesis of such designed systems made it possible to analyze the influence of individual elements of the structure on the reaction course, as well as the absorption and emission properties. The structure of all products was confirmed by conventional spectroscopic methods, and their luminescent properties were also determined.

Recent developments in the utility of saturated azaheterocycles in peptidomimetics.

To a large extent, the physical and chemical properties of peptidomimetic molecules are dictated by the integrated heterocyclic scaffolds they contain. Heterocyclic moieties are introduced into a majority of peptide-mimicking molecules to modulate conformational flexibility, improve bioavailability, and fine-tune electronics, and in order to achieve potency similar to or better than that of the natural peptide ligand. This mini-review delineates recent developments, limited to the past five years, in the utility of selected saturated 3- to 6-membered heterocyclic moieties in peptidomimetic design. Also discussed is the chemistry involved in the synthesis of the azaheterocyclic scaffolds and the structural implications of the introduction of these azaheterocycles in peptide backbones as well as side chains of the peptide mimics.

Positioning of an unprecedented 1,5-oxaza spiroquinone scaffold into SMYD2 inhibitors in epigenetic space.

Lysine methyltransferases are important regulators of epigenetic signaling and are emerging as a novel drug target for drug discovery. This work demonstrates the positioning of novel 1,5-oxaza spiroquinone scaffold into selective SET and MYND domain-containing proteins 2 methyltransferases inhibitors. Selectivity of the scaffold was identified by epigenetic target screening followed by SAR study for the scaffold. The optimization was performed iteratively by two-step optimization consisting of iterative synthesis and computational studies (docking, metadynamics simulations). Computational binding studies guided the important interactions of the spiro[5.5]undeca scaffold in pocket 1 and Lysine channel and suggested extension of tail length for the improvement of potency (IC50: up to 399 nM). The effective performance of cell proliferation assay for chosen compounds (IC50: up to 11.9 nM) led to further evaluation in xenograft assay. The potent compound 24 demonstrated desirable in vivo efficacy with growth inhibition rate of 77.7% (4 fold decrease of tumor weight and 3 fold decrease of tumor volume). Moreover, mirosomal assay and pharmacokinetic profile suggested further developability of this scaffold through the identification of major metabolites (dealkylation at silyl group, reversible hydration product, the absence of toxic quinone fragments) and enough exposure of the testing compound 24 in plasma. Such spiro[5.5]undeca framework or ring system was neither been reported nor suggested as a modulator of methyltransferases. The chemo-centric target positioning and structural novelty can lead to potential pharmacological benefit.

Inhibition of amyloid formation of amyloid ß (1-42), amylin and insulin by 1,5-diazacyclooctanes, a spermine-acrolein conjugate.

Amyloid aggregates of proteins are known to be involved in various diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). It is therefore speculated that the inhibition of amyloid formation can play an important role in the prevention of various diseases involving amyloids. Recently, we have found that acrolein reacts with polyamines, such as spermine, and produces 1,5-diazacyclooctane, such as cyclic spermine (cSPM). cSPM could suppress the aggregation of amyloid ß 1-40 (Aß40), one of the causative proteins of AD. This result suggests the potential inhibitory effect of cSPM against Aß 1-42 (Aß42) and other amyloid protein aggregation which are the main pathological features of AD and other diseases. However, the effect on the aggregation of such proteins remains unclear. In this study, the effect of cSPM on the amyloid formation of Aß42, amylin, and insulin was investigated. These three amyloidogenic proteins forming amyloids under physiological conditions (pH 7.4 and 37℃) served as model and are thought to be the causative proteins of AD, type 2 diabetes, and insulin-derived amyloidosis, respectively. Our results indicate that cSPM can suppress the amyloid aggregation of these proteins and reduce cytotoxicity. This study contributes to a better understanding of means to potentially counteract diseases by the means of polyamine and acrolein.

Nitrogen-Containing Heterocycles as Significant Molecular Scaffolds for Medicinal and Other Applications.

Most of the organic compounds applied as pharmaceuticals or intermediates utilized in their synthesis contain heterocyclic motifs [...].

Discovery of the Next-Generation Pan-TRK Kinase Inhibitors for the Treatment of Cancer.

The neurotrophic receptor tyrosine kinase (NTRK) genes including NTRK1, NTRK2, and NTRK3 encode the tropomyosin receptor kinase (Trk) proteins TrkA, TrkB, and TrkC, respectively. So far, two TRK inhibitors, larotrectinib sulfate (LOXO-101 sulfate) and entrectinib (NMS-E628, RXDX-101), have been approved for clinical use in 2018 and 2019, respectively. To overcome acquired resistance, next-generation Trk inhibitors such as selitrectinib (LOXO-195) and repotrectinib (TPX-0005) have been developed and exhibit effectiveness to induce remission in patients with larotrectinib treatment failure. Herein, we report the identification and optimization of a series of macrocyclic compounds as potent pan-Trk (WT and MT) inhibitors that exhibited excellent physiochemical properties and good oral pharmacokinetics. Compound 10 was identified via optimization from the aspects of chemistry and pharmacokinetic properties, which showed good activity against wild and mutant TrkA/TrkC in in vitro and in vivo studies.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel diazaspirodecanone derivatives containing piperidine-4-carboxamide as chitin synthase inhibitors and antifungal agents.

A series of novel 2-oxo-(1-oxo-2,8-diazaspiro[4.5]decane-8-yl)ethylpiperidine carboxamide derivatives were designed, synthesized and characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR and HRMS spectroscopy. All eighteen newly prepared compounds were evaluated for their inhibition against chitin synthase (CHS) and antifungal activities in vitro. The enzyme assay revealed that compound 5h showed excellent inhibitory activity against CHS with IC50 value of 0.10 mM, and the compounds 5b, 5d and 5q showed good inhibition against chitin synthase with IC50 values of 0.13 mM, 0.18 mM and 0.15 mM, respectively, while IC50 value of ployoxin B was 0.08 mM. Meanwhile, the others of these compounds exhibited moderate inhibition potency against chitin synthase. The antifungal assay showed compound 5h had excellent antifungal activity compared with the control drugs fluconazole and polyoxin B against these tested strains including C. albicans, A. fumigatus, C. neoformans and A. flavus. Its excellent antifungal activity was consistent with its excellent chitin synthase inhibition. Compound 5k and 5l against C. albicans were comparable with fluconazole, and they showed strong antifungal potency against A. flavus with MIC values of 0.07 mmol/L and 0.13 mmol/L respectively. Compound 5m had similar MIC value against A. fumigatus to fluconazole. The phenomenon that compounds 5b, 5d and 5q that showed good enzymatic inhibition didn't exert good antifungal activity, while compounds 5k, 5l and 5m that showed moderate chitin synthase inhibition exhibited excellent antifungal activity was discussed. Furthermore, the trial of drug combination showed that compounds had synergistic effects or additive effects with fluconazole against tested fungi which also verified that these designed compounds targeted different targets from that of fluconazole. Additionally, the antibacterial trial showed that all synthesized compounds had little potency against tested bacteria strains. These results indicated that the designed compounds were potential chitin synthase inhibitors and had selectively antifungal activities.

SAR towards indoline and 3-azaindoline classes of IDO1 inhibitors.

A novel series of IDO1 inhibitors have been identified with good IDO1 Hela cell and human whole blood activity. These inhibitors contain an indoline or a 3-azaindoline scaffold. Their structure-activity-relationship studies have been explored. Compounds 37 and 41 stood out as leads due to their good potency in IDO1 Hela assay, good IDO1 unbound hWB IC50s, reasonable unbound clearance, and good MRT in rat and dog PK studies.

New antiparasitic flexible triaryl diamidines, their prodrugs and aza analogues: Synthesis, in vitro and in vivo biological evaluation, and molecular modelling studies.

Dicationic diamidines have been well established as potent antiparasitic agents with proven activity against tropical diseases like trypanosomiasis and malaria. This work presents the synthesis of new mono and diflexible triaryl amidines (6a-c, 13a,b and 17), their aza analogues (23 and 27) and respective methoxyamidine prodrugs (5, 7, 12a,b, 22 and 26). All diamidines were assessed in vitro against Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense (T. b. r.) and Plasmodium falciparum (P. f.) where they displayed potent to moderate activities at the nanomolar level with IC50s = 11-378 nM for T. b. r. and 4-323 nM against P. f.. In vivo efficacy testing against T. b. r. STIB900 has shown the monoflexible diamidine 6c as the most potent derivative in this study eliciting 4/4 cures of infected mice for a treatment period of >60 days upon a 4 × 5 mg/kg dose i. p. treatment. Moreover, thermal melting analysis measurement ΔTm for this series of diamidines/poly (dA-dT) complexes fell between 0.5 and 19 °C with 6c showing the highest binding to the DNA minor groove. Finally, a 50 ns molecular dynamics study of an AT-rich DNA dodecamer with compound 6c revealed a strong binding complex supported by vdW and electrostatic interactions.

Design, synthesis and structure-activity relationships of novel N11-, C12- and C13-substituted 15-membered homo-aza-clarithromycin derivatives against various resistant bacteria.

Bacterial infections are still the main significant problem of public health in the world, and their elimination will greatly rely on the discovery of antibacterial drugs. In the processes of our searching for novel macrolide derivatives with excellent activity against sensitive and resistant bacteria, three series of novel N11-, C12- and C13-substituted 15-membered homo-aza-clarithromycin derivatives were designed and synthesized as Series A, B and C by creatively opening the lactone ring of clarithromycin (CAM), introducing various 4-substituted phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazole side chains at the N11, C12 or C13 position of CAM and macrolactonization. The results from their in vitro antibacterial activity demonstrated that compounds 20c, 20d and 20f displayed not only the most potent activity against S. aureus ATCC25923 with the MIC values of 0.5, 0.5 and 0.5 µg/mL, but also greatly improved activity against B. subtilis ATCC9372 with the MIC values of less than or equal to 0.25, 0.25 and 0.25 µg/mL, respectively. In particular, compound 11g exhibited the strongest antibacterial effectiveness against all the tested resistant bacterial strains and had well balanced activity with the MIC values of 4-8 µg/mL. Further study on minimum bactericidal concentration and kinetics confirmed that compound 11g possessed a bacteriostatic effect on bacterial proliferation. Moreover, the results of molecular docking revealed an potential additional binding force between compound 11g and U790 in addition to the normal binding force of macrolide skeleton, which may explain why this compound performed the most potent activity against resistant bacteria. The results of cytotoxic assay indicated that compounds 20c, 20d and 20f were non-toxic to human breast cancer MCF-7 cells at its effective antibacterial concentration.

Photoinduced oxidative cyclopropanation of ene-ynamides: synthesis of 3-aza[n.1.0]bicycles via vinyl radicals.

The first photoinduced synthesis of polyfunctionalized 3-aza[n.1.0]bicycles from readily available ene-ynamides and 2,6-lutidine N-oxide using an organic acridinium photocatalyst is reported. Applying a photocatalytic strategy to the reactive distonic cation vinyl radical intermediate from ynamide, a series of bio-valuable 3-azabicycles, including diverse 3-azabicyclio[4.1.0]heptanes and 3-azabicyclo[5.1.0]octanes that are challenging to accomplish using traditional methods, have been successfully synthesized in good to high yields under mild and metal-free conditions. Mechanistic studies are consistent with the photocatalyzed single-electron oxidation of ene-ynamide and the intermediacy of a putative cationic vinyl radical in this transformation. Importantly, this strategy provides new access to the development of photocatalytic vinyl radical cascades for the synthesis of structurally sophisticated substrates.

Synthesis, Biological Evaluation, and Molecular Modeling of Aza-Crown Ethers.

Synthetic and natural ionophores have been developed to catalyze ion transport and have been shown to exhibit a variety of biological effects. We synthesized 24 aza- and diaza-crown ethers containing adamantyl, adamantylalkyl, aminomethylbenzoyl, and ε-aminocaproyl substituents and analyzed their biological effects in vitro. Ten of the compounds (8, 10-17, and 21) increased intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i) in human neutrophils, with the most potent being compound 15 (N,N'-bis[2-(1-adamantyl)acetyl]-4,10-diaza-15-crown-5), suggesting that these compounds could alter normal neutrophil [Ca2+]i flux. Indeed, a number of these compounds (i.e., 8, 10-17, and 21) inhibited [Ca2+]i flux in human neutrophils activated by N-formyl peptide (fMLF). Some of these compounds also inhibited chemotactic peptide-induced [Ca2+]i flux in HL60 cells transfected with N-formyl peptide receptor 1 or 2 (FPR1 or FPR2). In addition, several of the active compounds inhibited neutrophil reactive oxygen species production induced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and neutrophil chemotaxis toward fMLF, as both of these processes are highly dependent on regulated [Ca2+]i flux. Quantum chemical calculations were performed on five structure-related diaza-crown ethers and their complexes with Ca2+, Na+, and K+ to obtain a set of molecular electronic properties and to correlate these properties with biological activity. According to density-functional theory (DFT) modeling, Ca2+ ions were more effectively bound by these compounds versus Na+ and K+. The DFT-optimized structures of the ligand-Ca2+ complexes and quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) analysis showed that the carbonyl oxygen atoms of the N,N'-diacylated diaza-crown ethers participated in cation binding and could play an important role in Ca2+ transfer. Thus, our modeling experiments provide a molecular basis to explain at least part of the ionophore mechanism of biological action of aza-crown ethers.

Exploration of 7-azaindole-coumaranone hybrids and their analogues as protein kinase inhibitors.

7-Azaindole has been labelled a privileged scaffold for the design of new potent inhibitors of protein kinases. In this paper, we determined the inhibition profiles of novel mono- and disubstituted derivatives of 7-azaindole-coumaranone hybrids on various disease-related protein kinases. Eight hit compounds were identified, including a potent Haspin inhibitor with an IC50 value of 0.15 µM. An interesting observation was that all active monosubstituted compounds displayed dual inhibition for Haspin and GSK-3ß, while disubstituted derivatives inhibited GSK-3ß and LmCK1 from Leishmania major parasite. Analyses of structure activity relationships (SARs) also revealed that mono-substitution with para-fluorobenzyloxy ring produced an equipotent inhibition of Haspin and GSK-3ß. Haspin and GSK-3ß are relevant targets for developing new anticancer agents while LmCK1 is an innovative target for leishmanicidal drugs. Novel compounds reported in this paper constitute promising starting points for the development of new anticancer and leishmanicidal drugs.

Stimulus-sensitive liposomal delivery system based on new 3,7-diazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane derivatives.

3,7-Diazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane scaffold can serve as a basis for the design of molecular switches stimulating the fast release of water soluble compounds under the influence of external factors from the liposomal containers having those switches incorporated into the lipid bilayer. It was demonstrated that liposomes having 3,7-dihexadecyl-1,5-diphenyl-3,7-diazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonan-9-one (3) incorporated into the liposomal membrane sharply increase the permeability upon pH decrease from 7.4 to 6.5, and compound 3 can serve as a pH-sensitive agent in the bilayer of liposomal nanocontainers. Similar but less pronounced effect was shown for liposomes modified with 3,7-bis(methyldodecylaminoacetyl)-1,5-dimethyl-3,7-diazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane (5) and 3,7-didodecylsulfonyl-1,5-dimethyl-3,7-diazabicyclo[3.3.1]nonan-9-one (4). The structure (morphology) and size of modified liposomes were studied with scanned transmission electron microscopy.

Phosphinanes and Azaphosphinanes as Potent and Selective Inhibitors of Activated Thrombin-Activatable Fibrinolysis Inhibitor (TAFIa).

Selective and potent inhibitors of activated thrombin activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFIa) have the potential to increase endogenous and therapeutic fibrinolysis and to behave like profibrinolytic agents without the risk of major hemorrhage, since they do not interfere either with platelet activation or with coagulation during blood hemostasis. Therefore, TAFIa inhibitors could be used in at-risk patients for the treatment, prevention, and secondary prevention of stroke, venous thrombosis, and pulmonary embolisms. In this paper, we describe the design, the structure-activity relationship (SAR), and the synthesis of novel, potent, and selective phosphinanes and azaphosphinanes as TAFIa inhibitors. Several highly active azaphosphinanes display attractive properties suitable for further in vivo efficacy studies in thrombosis models.

Design, synthesis, and evaluation of cytotoxic activities of arylnaphthalene lignans and aza-analogs.

A concise and versatile synthetic strategy for the total synthesis of arylnaphthalene lignans and aza-analogs was developed. The main objective was to develop synthetic tactics for the creation of the lactone and lactam unit that would give access to an array of synthetic, natural, and/or bioactive compounds through rather simple chemical manipulation. The flexibility and potentiality of these new processes were further illustrated by the total synthesis of retrojusticidin B (13b), justicidin C (14b), and methoxy-vitedoamine A (22a). In this study, a series of novel aryl-naphthalene lignans and aza-analogs were synthesized, and the cytotoxic activities of all compounds on cancer cell growth were evaluated. The target compounds were structurally characterized by 1 H NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance), 13 C NMR, infrared, high-resolution mass spectrometry, and X-ray crystallography. The IC50 values of these compounds on five tumor cell lines (A549, HS683, MCF-7, SK-MEL-28, and B16-F1) were obtained by MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) colorimetric assay. Five of the compounds exhibited excellent activity compared to 5-fluorouracil and etoposide against the five cell lines tested, with IC50 values ranging from 1 to 10 µM.

Discovery of novel 4-azaaryl-N-phenylpyrimidin-2-amine derivatives as potent and selective FLT3 inhibitors for acute myeloid leukaemia with FLT3 mutations.

Feline McDonough sarcoma (FMS)-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) is one of the most pursued targets in the treatment of acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) as its gene amplification and mutations, particularly internal tandem duplication (ITD), contribute to the pathogenesis of AML and the resistance to known FLT3 inhibitors. To conquer this challenge, there is a quest for structurally novel FLT3 inhibitors. Herein, we report the discovery of a new series of 4-azaaryl-N-phenylpyrimidin-2-amine derivatives as potent and selective FLT3 inhibitors. Compounds 12b and 12r were capable of suppressing a wide range of mutated FLT3 kinases including ITD and D835Y mutants; the latter isoform is closely associated with acquired drug resistance. In addition, both compounds displayed an anti-proliferative specificity for FLT3-ITD-harbouring cell lines (i.e., MV4-11 and MOLM-13 cells) over those with expression of the wild-type kinase or even without FLT3 expression. In mechanistic studies using MV4-11 cells, 12b was found to diminish the phosphorylation of key downstream effectors of FLT3 and induce apoptosis, supporting an FLT3-ITD-targeted mechanism of its anti-proliferative action.

Synthesis of azachalcones, their α-amylase, α-glucosidase inhibitory activities, kinetics, and molecular docking studies.

Diabetes being a chronic metabolic disorder have attracted the attention of medicinal chemists and biologists. The introduction of new and potential drug candidates for the cure and treatment of diabetes has become a major concern due to its increased prevelance worldwide. In the current study, twenty-seven azachalcone derivatives 3-29 were synthesized and evaluated for their antihyperglycemic activities by inhibiting α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzymes. Five compounds 3 (IC50 = 23.08 ± 0.03 µM), (IC50 = 26.08 ± 0.43 µM), 5 (IC50 = 24.57 ± 0.07 µM), (IC50 = 27.57 ± 0.07 µM), 6 (IC50 = 24.94 ± 0.12 µM), (IC50 = 27.13 ± 0.08 µM), 16 (IC50 = 27.57 ± 0.07 µM), (IC50 = 29.13 ± 0.18 µM), and 28 (IC50 = 26.94 ± 0.12 µM) (IC50 = 27.99 ± 0.09 µM) demonstrated good inhibitory activities against α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzymes, respectively. Acarbose was used as the standard in this study. Structure-activity relationship was established by considering the parent skeleton and different substitutions on aryl ring. The compounds were also subjected for kinetic studies to study their mechanism of action and they showed competitive mode of inhibition against both enzymes. The molecular docking studies have supported the results and showed that these compounds have been involved in various binding interactions within the active site of enzyme.

2-((1-Phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methyl)-2-azabicyclo[3.2.1]octan-3-one derivatives: Simplification and modification of aconitine scaffold for the discovery of novel anticancer agents.

The molecular chaperone heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is a promising target for cancer therapy. Natural product aconitine is a potential Hsp90 inhibitor reported in our previous work. In this study, we designed and synthesized a series of 2-((1-phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methyl)-2-azabicyclo[3.2.1]octan-3-one derivatives as potent Hsp90 inhibitors by simplifying and modifying aconitine scaffold. Among these compounds, 14t exhibited an excellent antiproliferative activity against LoVo cells with an IC50 value of 0.02 µM and a significant Hsp90α inhibitory activity with an IC50 value of 0.71 nM. Molecular docking studies provided a rational binding model of 14t in complex with Hsp90α. The following cell cycle and apoptosis assays revealed that compound 14t could arrest cell cycle at G1/S phase and induce cell apoptosis via up-regulation of bax and cleaved-caspase 3 protein expressions while inhibiting the expressions of bcl-2. Moreover, 14t could inhibit cell migration in LoVo and SW620 cell lines. Consistent with in vitro results, 14t significantly repressed tumor growth in the SW620 xenograft mouse model.