Synthesis and In-Vivo Evaluation of Benzoxazole Derivatives as Promising Anti-Psoriatic Drugs for Clinical Use.

2-(4-Chlorophenyl)-5-benzoxazoleacetic acid (CBA) and its ester, methyl-2-(4-chloro-phenyl)-5-benzoxazoleacetate (MCBA), were synthesized, and their structures were confirmed by 1HNMR, IR, and mass spectrophotometry. The anti-psoriatic activities of CBA and MCBA were tested using an imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriatic mouse model, in which mice were treated both topically (1% w/w) and orally (125 mg/kg) for 14 days. The erythema intensity, thickness, and desquamation of psoriasis were scored by calculating the psoriasis area severity index (PASI). The study also included the determination of histopathological alterations in the skin tissues of treated mice. Topical and oral administration of CBA and MCBA led to a reduction in erythema intensity, thickness, and desquamation, which was demonstrated by a significant decrease in the PASI value. In addition, skin tissues of mice treated with CBA and MCBA showed less evidence of psoriatic alterations, such as hyperkeratosis, parakeratosis, scale crust, edema, psoriasiform, and hyperplasia. After administration of either topical or oral dosing, the anti-psoriatic effects were found to be stronger in MCBA-treated than in CBA-treated mice. These effects were comparable to those produced by Clobetasol propionate, the reference drug. This drug discovery could be translated into a potential new drug for future clinical use in psoriasis treatment.

Regioselective deprotection of the monosaccharide-bearing thiocyanomethyl group at the anomeric position monitored by reversed-phase HPLC method.

In the current work, the investigation and development of a chemo-enzymatic approach for the synthesis of neo-glycoproteins have been studied. This strategy is based on the regioselective enzymatic hydrolysis of peracetylated monosaccharide, functionalized at the anomeric position (C1) as 1-thio-(S-cyanomethyl) group, a precursor of the 2- iminomethoxyethyl thioglycosides-linker for protein glycosylation, catalyzed by immobilized enzymes to obtain selectively monodeprotected compounds. The use of this activation in C1 is the most frequently used strategy for glycoprotein preparation. The selected biocatalysts are the lipase from Candida rugosa and the acetyl xylan esterase from Bacillus pumilus. A reversed-phase high-performance liquid-chromatographic (HPLC) method for monitoring the regioselective deprotection reaction has been developed. The developed HPLC method was used as a fingerprint to follow the hydrolysis of substrate 1 to substrate 1a and to determine its purity and yield. Moreover, the obtained compound was further purified by flash chromatography. The obtained compound 1a was further characterized using (1) H, (13) C NMR, correlation spectroscopy (COSY) and heteronuclear multiple bond correlation. The resulting product can be used as an intermediate for the preparation of di- and more complex oligosaccharides aimed at protein conjugation. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Synthesis, In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation of the N-ethoxycarbonylmorpholine Ester of Diclofenac as a Prodrug.

The N-ethoxycarbonylmorpholine moiety was evaluated as a novel prodrug moiety for carboxylic acid containing drugs represented by diclofenac (1). Compound 2, the N-ethoxycarbonylmorpholine ester of diclofenac was synthesized and evaluated as a potential prodrug. The stability of the synthesized prodrug was evaluated in solutions of pH 1 and 7.4, and in plasma. The ester's half lives were found to be 8 h, 47 h and 21 min in pH 1, pH 7.4 and plasma, respectively. Equimolar doses of diclofenac sodium and its synthesized prodrug were administered orally to a group of rabbits in a crossover study to evaluate their pharmacokinetic parameters. The prodrug 2 shows a similar rate and extent of absorption as the parent drug (1). The ulcerogenicity of the prepared prodrug was evaluated and compared with the parent drug. The prodrug showed less ulcerogenicity as detected by fewer number and smaller size of ulcers. In conclusion, the newly synthesized N-ethoxycarbonylmorpholine ester of diclofenac prodrug showed appropriate stability properties at different pHs, similar pharmacokinetic profile, and much less ulcerogenecity at the GIT compared to the parent drug diclofenac.

Synthesis and evaluation of mutual azo prodrug of 5-aminosalicylic acid linked to 2-phenylbenzoxazole-2-yl-5-acetic acid in ulcerative colitis.

In this study, the syntheses of 4-aminophenylbenzoxazol-2-yl-5-acetic acid, (an analogue of a known nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug [NSAID]) and 5-[4-(benzoxazol-2-yl-5-acetic acid)phenylazo]-2-hydroxybenzoic acid (a novel mutual azo prodrug of 5-aminosalicylic acid [5-ASA]) are reported. The structures of the synthesized compounds were confirmed using infrared (IR), hydrogen-1 nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR), and mass spectrometry (MS) spectroscopy. Incubation of the azo compound with rat cecal contents demonstrated the susceptibility of the prepared azo prodrug to bacterial azoreductase enzyme. The azo compound and the 4-aminophenylbenzoxazol-2-yl-5-acetic acid were evaluated for inflammatory bowel diseases, in trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNB)-induced colitis in rats. The synthesized diazo compound and the 4-aminophenylbenzoxazol-2-yl-5-acetic acid were found to be as effective as 5-aminosalicylic acid for ulcerative colitis. The results of this work suggest that the 4-aminophenylbenzoxazol-2-yl-5-acetic acid may represent a new lead for treatment of ulcerative colitis.