New substituted 1-(2,3-dihydrobenzo[1, 4]dioxin-2-ylmethyl)piperidin-4-yl derivatives with alpha(2)-adrenoceptor antagonist activity

1,3-Diazepine: A privileged scaffold in medicinal chemistry

Privileged structures have been widely used as effective templates for drug discovery. While benzo-1,4-diazepine constitutes the first historical example of such a structure, the 1,3 analogue is just as rich in terms of applications in medicinal chemistry. The 1,3-diazepine moiety is present in numerous biological active compounds including natural products, and is used to design compounds displaying a large range of biological activities. It is present in the clinically used anticancer compound pentostatin, in several recent FDA approved β-lactamase inhibitors (e.g., avibactam) and also in coformycin, a natural product known as a ring-expanded purine analogue displaying antiviral and anticancer activities. Several other 1,3-diazepine containing compounds have entered into clinical trials. This heterocyclic structure has been and is still widely used in medicinal chemistry to design enzyme inhibitors, GPCR ligands, and so forth. This review endeavours to highlight the main use of the 1,3-diazepine scaffold and its derivatives, and their applications in medicinal chemistry, drug design, and therapy. We will focus more particularly on the development of enzyme inhibitors incorporating this scaffold, with a strong emphasis on the molecular interactions involved in the inhibition mechanism.

Nucleophilic Cyclization/Electrophilic Substitution of (2,2-Dialkoxyethyl)ureas: Highly Regioselective Access to Novel 4-(Het)arylimidazolidinones and Benzo[d][1,3]diazepinones

Imidazolidin-2-one and 1,3-benzodiazepin-2-one scaffolds are structural motifs of many biologically active compounds. Herein, we report a highly regioselective acid-catalyzed intramolecular nucleophilic cyclization/intermolecular electrophilic substitution reaction sequence of (2,2-dialkoxyethyl)ureas. The reaction benefits from readily available starting materials, a simple workup procedure, moderate to high yields of target compounds, and provides a convenient entry to previously unknown 4-(het)arylimidazolidinones and 5-(het)arylbenzodiazepinones. The proposed mechanism of the reaction is also discussed.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel quinazoline-4-piperidinesulfamide derivatives as inhibitors of NPP1

The ecto-nucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterase-1 (NPP1) was recently shown to promote mineralization of the aortic valve, hence, its inhibition represents a significant target. A quinazoline-4-piperidine sulfamide compound (QPS1) has been described as a specific and non-competitive inhibitor of NPP1. We report herein the synthesis and in vitro inhibition studies of novel quinazoline-4-piperidine sulfamide analogues using QPS1 as the lead compound. Of the 26 derivatives prepared, four compounds were found to have K_i < 105 nM against human NPP1.

Asymmetric synthesis of δ-amino acid derivatives via diastereoselective vinylogous Mannich reactions between N-tert-butanesulfinyl imines and dioxinone-derived lithium dienolate

A diastereoselective vinylogous Mannich reaction between theN-tert-butanesulfinyl imines and dioxinone-derived lithium dienolate was developed.

O-phenyl carbamate and phenyl urea thiiranes as selective matrix metalloproteinase-2 inhibitors that cross the blood-brain barrier

Brain metastasis occurs in 20-40% of cancer patients. Treatment is mostly palliative, and the inability of most drugs to penetrate the brain presents one of the greatest challenges in the development of therapeutics for brain metastasis. Matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) plays important roles in invasion and vascularization of the central nervous system and represents a potential target for treatment of brain metastasis. Carbonate, O-phenyl carbamate, urea, and N-phenyl carbamate derivatives of SB-3CT, a selective and potent gelatinase inhibitor, were synthesized and evaluated. The O-phenyl carbamate and urea variants were selective and potent inhibitors of MMP-2. Carbamate 5b was metabolized to the potent gelatinase inhibitor 2, which was present at therapeutic concentrations in the brain. In contrast, phenyl urea 6b crossed the blood-brain barrier, however, higher doses would result in therapeutic brain concentrations. Carbamate 5b and urea 6b show potential for intervention of MMP-2-dependent diseases such as brain metastasis.

Modelling drugs and receptors using potentials: examples in the GPCRs' domain

Shape complementarity, electrostatic and hydrophobic matching, were used to model drugs and receptors. From known experimental data on alpha1A/alpha2A-adrenergic ligands and alpha1A/alpha2A-adrenoceptors, a model for the ligand binding sites, based on the structure of bacteriorhodopsin as a template, was proposed and built. Agonists and antagonists have overlapping but different binding sites. Emphasis was given on the role of the disulphide bridge and on the role of the sodium site. The model was extended to other G-protein coupled receptors.