One-pot synthesis and biological evaluation of aspergillamides and analogues

A one-pot total synthesis of aspergillamide and analogues by a solution phase Ugi multi component reaction (MCR) is described. The reaction is easily performed in 96-well plates and offers a facile access to diverse aspergillamide analogue compound libraries. The antibiotic and cytotoxic activity of these compounds is measured. Several of them are more potent than the natural product.     

One-pot synthesis of highly functionalized morphans from C-glycosides

Highly functionalized morphan derivatives were synthesized from nitroalkene 2′-(oxoalkyl)-C-glycosides by a tandem reaction that created three (two C–N and one C–C) new bonds and four stereogenic centers in a one-pot procedure under very mild conditions without the use of expensive reagents. The transformation was achieved from a β-elimination/Michael addition cascade, followed by Michael addition of the amine and intramolecular enamination. In the presence of sodium cyanoborohydride the iminium intermediate was reduced in situ to afford the desired morphans.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of novel imidazo[4,5-c]pyridinecarboxamide derivatives as PARP-1 inhibitors

A series of novel cyclic amine-substituted imidazo[4,5-c]pyridinecarboxamide analogs were designed and synthesized. All the target compounds were evaluated for their PARP inhibition activity, and the result indicated that most of the compounds possessed inhibitory effect on PARP at the concentration of 1 μM, among which compound 8d (IC₅₀ = 0.528 μM) was selected for evaluating the antitumor effect in vivo. The result showed the antitumor efficacy of the compound 8d and cisplatin combination group in a mouse A549 model is similar with that of the ABT-888 and cisplatin combination group.     

One-pot synthesis and chiral analysis of cyclopropane derivatives

A user-friendly, one-pot procedure was developed to access racemic as well as enantiomerically enriched cyclopropanes. Thus, the cyclopropanation of olefin (3) was performed using Meldrum's acid (4) or dimethyl malonate (5) and diacetoxyiodobenzene PhI(OAc)2 (6) or iodosyl benzene PhI=O (7) for in situ generation and decomposition of the phenyliodonium ylide 1 and 2, respectively. The reaction proceeds well with 5 mol% of achiral rhodium (II)-catalyst [Rh2(OAc)4] and a 10-fold excess of olefin affording the cyclopropane derivates 10 and 11, respectively, with high yield. The system is compatible with chiral Rh(II)-catalysts 8 and 9 and an enantiomeric excess up to 66% was achieved. An effective baseline separation of the enantiomers of the resulting cyclopropane derivatives was achieved using gas chromatography on the chiral stationary phase Chirasil-beta-dex.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of novel 3H-imidazole [4,5-b] pyridine derivatives as selective mTOR inhibitors

A series of 3H-imidazo [4,5-b] pyridines derivatives were designed and synthesized as selective mTOR inhibitors. The systematic optimization of the molecules resulted in the identification of two compounds 10d and 10n with nanomolar mTOR inhibitory activity and selectivity over PI3Kα. Besides, compounds 10d and 10n demonstrated attractive potency against human breast cancer cells (MCF-7) and human ovarian cancer cell (A2780).     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of novel antitumor spirodihydrothiopyran-oxindole derivatives

Sulfur containing spiroheterocyclic oxindoles are promising privileged scaffolds in medicinal chemistry and drug discovery. Previously, we identified a new class of spirodihydrothiopyran-oxindoles with good in vitro antitumor activity against A549 lung cancer cell line. Herein, various spirooxindole-dihydrothiopyrans with diverse substitutions were synthesized and assayed to investigate the structure-activity relationships. Among the derivatives, compounds 4b, 4i, 4m, 4n and 4q displayed superior or comparable antitumor activity than nutlin-3. Molecular mechanism study revealed this scaffold displayed moderate MDM2 inhibitory activity, significantly induced cancer cell apoptosis and arrested cell cycle at G0/G1 phase, which represented a good lead compound for antitumor drug discovery.     

Antileishmanial evaluation of clubbed bis(indolyl)-pyridine derivatives: One-pot synthesis,in vitro biological evaluations and in silico ADME prediction

A new series of bis(indolyl)-pyridine derivatives 6(a–m) were synthesized by Chichibabin reaction process and evaluated for antileishmanial and antibacterial activities to establish structure–activity relationship. The synthesis was carried out through one-pot multicomponent reaction of 3-acetylindole, aromatic aldehydes, and ammonium acetate in the presence of camphor-10-sulfonic acid as a catalyst. The compounds 6d (IC₅₀ = 102.47 μM) and 6f (IC₅₀ = 99.49 μM) had shown promising antileishmanial against L. donovani promastigotes when compared with standard sodium stibogluconate (IC₅₀ = 490.00 μM). All the synthesized compounds (MIC range = 41.35–228.69 μg/mL) had shown potent antibacterial activity than standard ampicillin (MIC range = 100.00–250.00 μg/mL) against all the tested bacterial strains. In silico ADME and metabolic site prediction studies were also held out to set an effective lead candidate for the future antileishmanial and antibacterial drug discovery initiatives.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of negatively charged 111In-DTPA-octreotide derivatives

Our previous studies indicated that ¹¹¹In-diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (¹¹¹In-DTPA)-octreotide derivatives with an additional negative charge by replacing N-terminal d-phenylalanine (d-Phe) with an acidic amino acid such as l-aspartic acid (Asp) or its derivative exhibited low renal radioactivity levels when compared with ¹¹¹In-DTPA-d-Phe¹-octreotide. On the basis of the findings, we designed, synthesized and evaluated two Asp-modified ¹¹¹In-DTPA-conjugated octreotide derivatives, ¹¹¹In-DTPA-Asp¹-octreotide and ¹¹¹In-DTPA-Asp⁰-d-Phe¹-octreotide. While ¹¹¹In-DTPA-Asp¹-octreotide showed negligible AR42J cell uptake, ¹¹¹In-DTPA-Asp⁰-d-Phe¹-octreotide exhibited AR42J cell uptake similar to that of ¹¹¹In-DTPA-d-Phe¹-octreotide. When administered to AR42J tumor-bearing mice, ¹¹¹In-DTPA-Asp⁰-d-Phe¹-octreotide exhibited renal radioactivity levels significantly lower than did ¹¹¹In-DTPA-d-Phe¹-octreotide at 1 and 3 h post-injection. No significant differences were observed in tumor accumulation between ¹¹¹In-DTPA-Asp⁰-d-Phe¹-octreotide and ¹¹¹In-DTPA-d-Phe¹-octreotide after 1 and 3 h injection. The findings in this study suggested that an interposition of an Asp at an appropriate position in ¹¹¹In-DTPA-d-Phe¹-octreotide would constitute a useful strategy to develop ¹¹¹In-DTPA-d-Phe¹-octreotide derivatives of low renal radioactivity levels while preserving tumor accumulation.     

Synthesis and initial biological evaluation of substituted 1-phenylamino-2-thio-4,5-dimethyl-1H-imidazole derivatives

In this work, some new 2-[(4,5-dimethyl-1-(arylamino)-1H-imidazol-2-yl)thio]-1-(aryl)ethanone derivatives were synthesized and investigated for their antibacterial, antifungal and anticancer activities. Toxicity of the most effective compounds was established by performing Brine-Shrimp lethality assay. Antifungal activity of the compounds was found to be higher than antibacterial and anticancer activities of the compounds.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of novel anti-cytokine 1,2,4-triazine derivatives

A series of 16 novel 1,2,4-triazine derivatives bearing hydrazone moiety (7a–7p) have been designed, synthesized and evaluated for their activity to inhibit IL-1β and TNF-α production. All compounds are reported for the first time. The chemical structures of all compounds were confirmed by spectroscopic methods and elemental analyzes. Most of the synthesized compounds were proved to have potent anti-cytokine activity and low toxicity on PBMC and MCF-7 cell lines. Compounds 7f, 7k, 7l and 7j presented simultaneously good levels of inhibition of both cytokines. Moreover, compound 7l exhibited good anti-inflammatory effect in carrageenan-induced rat paw edema. The results of Western blotting demonstrated that the anti-cytokine potential of compound 7l is mainly mediated through the inhibition of p38 MAPK signaling pathway. Molecular docking was performed to position compound 7l into p38α binding site in order to explore the potential target. The information of this work might be helpful for the design and synthesis of novel scaffold toward the development of new therapeutic agent to fight against inflammatory diseases.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of indole derivatives as Vif inhibitors

The crystal structure of viral infectivity factor (Vif) was reported recently, which makes it possible to design new inhibitors against Vif by structure-based drug design. Through analysis of the protein surface of Vif, the C2 pocket located in the N-terminal was found, which is suit for developing small molecular inhibitors. Then, in our article, fragment-based virtual screening (FBVS) was conducted and a series of fragments was obtained, among which, Zif-1 bearing indole scaffold and pyridine ring can form H-bonds with Tyr148 and Ile155. Subsequently, 19 derivatives of Zif-1 were synthesized. Through the immune-fluorescence staining and Western blot assays, Zif-15 shows potent activity in inhibiting Vif-mediated A3G degradation. Further docking experiment shows that Zif-15 form H-bond interactions with residues His139, Tyr148 and Ile155. Therefore, Zif-15 is a promising lead compound against Vif that can be used to treat AIDS.     

Design,synthesis, cyclooxygenase inhibition and biological evaluation of new 1,3,5-triaryl-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazole derivatives possessing amino/methanesulfonyl pharmacophore

A new series of 1,3,5-triaryl-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazole 10a–l was designed and synthesized via cyclization of chalcones 8a–f with 4-amino/methanesulfonylphenylhydrazine hydrochloride 9a–b. All the synthesized compounds were evaluated for their cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibition, anti-inflammatory activity, ulcerogenic liability and analgesic activity. All compounds were more COX-2 inhibitors than COX-1. While most compounds showed good anti-inflammatory activity, the trimethoxy derivatives (10a, 10b, 10g and 10h) were the most potent derivatives (ED₅₀ = 55.78, 53.99, 67.65 and 69.20 μmol/kg respectively) in comparison with celecoxib (ED₅₀ = 82.15 μmol/kg). Compounds 10a, 10b, 10g and 10h (ulcer index = 2.68, 1.20, 2.63 and 2.66 respectively) showed less ulceration effect than celecoxib (ulcer index = 2.90). Also, Compounds 10a, 10b, 10g and 10h showed analgesic activity higher than celecoxib and comparable to that of ibuprofen. In addition, molecular docking studies were performed for compounds 10a, 10b, 10g and 10h and the results were in agreement with that obtained from the in vitro COX inhibition assays.     

Isoxazole-type derivatives related to combretastatin A-4, synthesis and biological evaluation

Novel combretastatin analogues bearing various five-membered heterocycles with consecutive oxygen and nitrogen atoms, in place of the olefinic bridge of CA4, have been synthesized (isoxazole, isoxazoline, oxadiazole, etc). These compounds have been evaluated for cytotoxicity and their ability to inhibit the tubulin assembly. On the basis of the relative position of the aromatic A- and B-rings on the heterocyclic moiety, they could be split in two classes, the alpha,gamma- or alpha,beta-diaryl heterocyclic derivatives. In the first series, the 3,5-diaryloxadiazole 9a displayed comparable antitubulin activity to that of CA4, but was devoid of cytotoxic effects. Among the alpha,beta-diaryl heterocyclic derivatives, the 4,5-diarylisoxazole 35 exhibited greater antitubulin activity than that of CA4 (0.75 vs 1.2 microM), but modest antiproliferative activity. These data showed that minor alteration in the chemical structure of the heterocyclic ring and its relative orientation with regard to the two phenyl rings of CA4 could dramatically influence the tubulin binding properties.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of 2-indolinone derivatives as PAK1 inhibitors in MDA-MB-231 cells

P21-activated kinase 1 (PAK1) plays a vital role in the proliferation, survival and migration of cancer cells, which has emerged as a promising drug target for cancer therapy. In this study, a series of 2-indolinone derivatives were designed and synthesized through a structure-based strategy. A potent PAK1 inhibitor (ZMF-005) was discovered, which presented an IC₅₀ value of 0.22 μM against PAK1 with potent antiproliferative activity. Furthermore, we predicted the binding mode of ZMF-005 and PAK1 by molecule docking and dynamic (MD) simulation. In addition, ZMF-005 was documented to induce significant apoptosis and suppress migration in MDA-MB-231 cells. Collectively, these findings revealed that ZMF-005 is a novel potent PAK1 inhibitor for breast cancer treatment.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of anthranilamide derivatives as potent SMO inhibitors

A series of anthranilamide derivatives were designed and synthesized as novel smoothened (SMO) inhibitors based on the SMO inhibitor taladegib (LY2940680), which can also inhibit the SMO-D473H mutant, via a ring-opening strategy. The phthalazine core in LY2940680 was replaced with anthranilamide, which retained the inhibitory activity towards the hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway as evidenced by a dual luciferase reporter gene assay. Compound 12a displayed the best inhibitory activity against the Hh signaling pathway with IC₅₀ value of 34.09 nM, and exhibited better proliferation inhibitory activity towards the Daoy cell line (IC₅₀ = 0.48 μM) than LY2940680 (IC₅₀ = 0.79 μM).     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of novel hydrogen sulfide releasing capsaicin derivatives

Capsaicin (CAP), the prototypical TRPV1 agonist, is the major active component in chili peppers with health-promoting benefits. However, its use is limited by the low bioavailability and irritating quality. In this study, for improving the activity of CAP and alleviating its irritating effects, a series of H₂S-releasing CAPs were designed and synthesized by combining capsaicin and dihydro capsaicin with various hydrogen sulfide donors. The resulting compounds were evaluated their TRPV1 agonist activity, analgesic activity, anticancer activities, H₂S-releasing ability, and gastric mucosa irritation. Biological evaluation indicated that the most active compound B₉, containing 5-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-3H-1,2-dithiole-3-thione moiety as H₂S donor, had better analgesic activity and displayed more potent cytotoxic effects on the test cell lines than the lead compound CAP. Furthermore, the preferred compound, B₉ reduced rat gastric mucosa irritation caused by CAP. Notably, the improved properties of this derivative are associated with its H₂S-releasing capability.     

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel chalcone derivatives as antitubulin agents

A series of novel chalcone derivatives have been designed and synthesized, and their biological activities were also evaluated as potential inhibitors of tubulin. These compounds were assayed for growth-inhibitory activity against MCF-7 and A549 cell lines in vitro. Compound 3d showed the most potent antiproliferative activity against MCF-7 and A549 cell lines with IC(50) values of 0.03 and 0.95 μg/mL and exhibited the most potent tubulin inhibitory activity with IC(50) of 1.42 μg/mL. Docking simulation was performed to insert compound 3d into the crystal structure of tubulin at colchicines binding site to determine the probable binding model. Based on the preliminary results, compound 3d with potent inhibitory activity in tumor growth may be a potential anticancer agent.     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of 4-aminoquinoline-guanylthiourea derivatives as antimalarial agents

Guanylthiourea (GTU) has been identified as an important antifolate antimalarial pharmacophore unit, whereas, 4-amino quinolones are already known for antimalarial activity. In the present work molecules carrying 4-aminoquinoline and GTU moiety have been designed using molecular docking analysis with PfDHFR enzyme and heme unit. The docking results indicated that the necessary interactions (Asp54 and Ile14) and docking score (−9.63 to −7.36 kcal/mmol) were comparable to WR99210 (−9.89 kcal/mol). From these results nine molecules were selected for synthesis. In vitro analysis of these synthesized compounds reveal that out of the nine molecules, eight show antimalarial activity in the range of 0.61–7.55 μM for PfD6 strain and 0.43–8.04 μM for PfW2 strain. Further, molecular dynamics simulations were performed on the most active molecule to establish comparative binding interactions of these compounds and reference ligand with Plasmodium falciparum dihydrofolate reductase (PfDHFR).     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of Lenalidomide derivatives as tumor angiogenesis inhibitor

Lenalidomide is a type of immunomodulatory agent with anti-tumor activity by mainly expressed in the anti-angiogenesis. In order to enhance the pharmacological activity of Lenalidomide, a series of Lenalidomide derivatives were designed as tumor angiogenesis inhibitors. The potential anti-angiogenesis targets of Lenalidomide derivatives were virtual screened on Auto-Dock 4.0 by using reverse docking method. The six target proteins, such as vascular endothelial growth factor receptor, epidermal growth factor receptor, fibroblast growth factor receptor, BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase, p38 mitogen activated protein kinase and metal protein kinase, were chosen as the targets. The Lenalidomide derivatives were synthesized by alkylated, acylated or sulfonylated Lenalidomide and verified by the ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR and LC–MS. Their anti-cancer activities were detected by using CCK-8 in the esophageal carcinoma cell line EC9706. The results indicate that the inhibitory activities of Lenalidomide derivatives were higher than that of Lenalidomide.