Human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived neurons respond to convulsant drugs when co-cultured with hiPSC-derived astrocytes.

Accurate risk assessment for drug-induced seizure is expected to be performed before entering clinical studies because of its severity and fatal damage to drug development. Induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology has allowed the use of human neurons and glial cells in toxicology studies. Recently, several studies showed the advantage of co-culture system of human iPSC (hiPSC)-derived neurons with rodent/human primary astrocytes regarding neuronal functions. However, the application of hiPSC-derived neurons for seizure risk assessment has not yet been fully addressed, and not at all when co-cultured with hiPSC-derived astrocytes. Here, we characterized hiPSC-derived neurons co-cultured with hiPSC-derived astrocytes to discuss how hiPSC-derived neurons are useful to assess seizure risk of drugs. First, we detected the frequency of spikes and synchronized bursts hiPSC-derived neurons when co-cultured with hiPSC-derived astrocytes for 8 weeks. This synchronized burst was suppressed by the treatment with 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione, α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA) receptor antagonist, and D-(-)-2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid, an N-Methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist. These data suggested that co-cultured hiPSC-derived neurons formed synaptic connections mediated by AMPA and NMDA receptors. We also demonstrated that co-cultured hiPSC-derived neurons showed epileptiform activity upon treatment with gabazine or kaliotoxin. Finally, we performed single-cell transcriptome analysis in hiPSC-derived neurons and found that hiPSC-derived astrocytes activated the pathways involved in the activities of AMPA and NMDA receptor functions, neuronal polarity, and axon guidance in hiPSC-derived neurons. These data suggested that hiPSC-derived astrocytes promoted the development of action potential, synaptic functions, and neuronal networks in hiPSC-derived neurons, and then these functional alterations result in the epileptiform activity in response to convulsant drugs. Our study indicates the possibility that co-culture system of hiPSC-derived neurons with hiPSC-derived astrocytes could be useful in the risk assessment of drug-induced seizure.

Melanin-concentrating hormone receptor 1 antagonists. Synthesis and structure-activity relationships of novel 3-(aminomethyl)quinolines.

It was found that 3-(aminomethyl)quinoline derivatives showed high binding affinities for melanin-concentrating hormone receptor 1 (MCHR1) with reduced affinity for serotonin receptor 2c (5-HT2c) when the dihydronaphthalene nucleus of compound 1 (human MCHR1, IC(50) = 1.9 nM; human 5-HT2c receptor, IC(50) = 0.53 nM) was replaced by other bicyclic core scaffolds. Among the synthesized compounds, 8-methylquinoline derivative 5v especially showed high binding affinity (IC(50) = 0.54 nM), potent in vitro antagonistic activity (IC(50) = 2.8 nM) for MCHR1, and negligible affinity for 5-HT2c receptor (IC(50) > 1000 nM). Oral administration of 5v significantly and dose-dependently suppressed nocturnal food intake in diet-induced obese rats and did not affect food intake in MCHR1-deficient mice. These results and rat pharmacokinetic study findings suggested that compound 5v is a highly potent, orally bioavailable, and centrally acting nonpeptide MCHR1 antagonist.

Discovery, synthesis, and structure-activity relationship of 6-aminomethyl-7,8-dihydronaphthalenes as human melanin-concentrating hormone receptor 1 antagonists.

Human melanin-concentrating hormone receptor 1 (hMCHR1) antagonists are promising targets for obesity treatment. We identified the tetrahydronaphthalene derivative 1a with modest binding affinity for hMCHR1 by screening an in-house G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) ligand library. We synthesized a series of 6-aminomethyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydronaphthalenes and evaluated their activity as hMCHR1 antagonists. Modification of the biphenylcarbonylamino group revealed that the biphenyl moiety played a crucial role in the interaction of the antagonist with the receptor. The stereoselective effect of the chiral center on binding affinity generated the novel 6-aminomethyl-7,8-dihydronaphthalene scaffold without a chiral center. Optimization of the amino group led to the identification of a potent antagonist 2s (4'-fluoro-N-[6-(1-pyrrolidinylmethyl)-7,8-dihydro-2-naphthalenyl][1,1'-biphenyl]-4-carboxamide), which significantly inhibited the nocturnal food intake in rats after oral administration. Pharmacokinetic analysis confirmed that 2s had good oral bioavailability and brain penetrance. This antagonist appears to be a viable lead compound that can be used to develop a promising therapy for obesity.

T-226296: a novel, orally active and selective melanin-concentrating hormone receptor antagonist.

Through the screening of our in-house chemical compound library, we found a novel melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) receptor antagonist, T-226296, a (-) enantiomer of N-[6-(dimethylamino)-methyl]-5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-2-naphthalenyl]-4'-fluoro[1,1'-biphenyl]-4-carboxamide. T-226296 exhibited high affinity for cloned human and rat MCH receptors (SLC-1) in receptor binding assays (IC50=5.5+/-0.12 nM for human SLC-1; 8.6+/-0.32 nM for rat SLC-1). T-226296 had high selectivity over other receptors, including the second subtype of the MCH receptor, SLT (MCH2), transporters and ion channels. In Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells expressing human SLC-1, T-226296 reversed the MCH-mediated inhibition of forskolin-stimulated cAMP accumulation, inhibited MCH-induced intracellular Ca2+ increase, and also inhibited MCH-stimulated arachidonic acid release. In rats, oral administration of T-226296 (30 mg/kg) almost completely suppressed the food intake induced by intracerebroventricular injection of MCH. These results clearly indicate that T-226296 is a novel, orally active and selective MCH receptor antagonist that will be promising for further exploring the physiology and pathophysiology of MCH-SLC-1 signaling.