Discovery, structure-activity relationship, and pharmacological evaluation of (5-substituted-pyrrolidinyl-2-carbonyl)-2-cyanopyrrolidines as potent dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitors.

A series of (5-substituted pyrrolidinyl-2-carbonyl)-2-cyanopyrrolidine (C5-Pro-Pro) analogues was discovered as dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPPIV) inhibitors as a potential treatment of diabetes and obesity. X-ray crystallography data show that these inhibitors bind to the catalytic site of DPPIV with the cyano group forming a covalent bond with the serine residue of DPPIV. The C5-substituents make various interactions with the enzyme and affect potency, chemical stability, selectivity, and PK properties of the inhibitors. Optimized analogues are extremely potent with subnanomolar K(i)'s, are chemically stable, show very little potency decrease in the presence of plasma, and exhibit more than 1,000-fold selectivity against related peptidases. The best compounds also possess good PK and are efficacious in lowering blood glucose in an oral glucose tolerance test in ZDF rats.

Total Syntheses of (-)-Papuamine and (-)-Haliclonadiamine.

The pentacyclic marine alkaloids (-)-papuamine (1) and (-)-haliclonadiamine (2) have been prepared by total synthesis. The synthesis began with (-)-8, which was converted into diester 20 by way of bis-mesylate 17, dinitrile 18, and diacid 19. Dieckmann cyclization of 20 provided keto ester 21, which was transformed into acetal 22. After hydrolysis of the acetal, ketone 25 was subjected to reductive amination with 1,3-propanediamine and sodium triacetoxyborohydride to obtain diamines 26 and 27 as a 71:29 mixture of diastereomers, favoring the symmetrical isomer having the papuamine relative configuration. After transformation of the diamines to their t-Boc derivatives, the benzyl ethers were cleaved and the resulting diol was oxidized to dialdehyde 30. Application of the Seyferth procedure for conversion of aldehydes to alkynes gave a mixture of diynes 31 and 32. After removal of the t-Boc protecting groups from 31, diamino diyne 15 was treated with tributylstannane and azoisobutyronitrile to obtain the bis-vinylstannane 34. Treatment of this compound with Pd(II) and Cu(I) in the presence of air produced (-)-papuamine (1). (-)-Haliclonadiamine (2) was obtained from the unsymmetrical isomer, 32. The NMR spectra of the synthetic alkaloids were identical to those of authentic samples of the natural alkaloids.