6-Aryl-quinazolines as novel GABAB receptor positive allosteric modulators.

The systemic use of GABAB orthosteric agonist baclofen might be limited due to its detrimental properties: sedation and motor impairment. In contrast, GABAB positive allosteric modulators produce less adverse effects. Using BHF-177 as a starting point, we found a new active scaffold: the 6-aryl-quinazoline scaffold. Further elaborating the scaffold, we identified several in vitro and in vivo active compounds.

Discovery and Characterization of RGH-122, a Potent, Selective, and Orally Bioavailable V1a Receptor Antagonist.

The V1a receptor is a major contributor in mediating the social and emotional effects of arginine-vasopressin (AVP); therefore it represents a promising target in the treatment of several neuropsychiatric conditions. The aim of this research was to design and synthesize novel and selective V1a antagonists with improved in vitro and in vivo profiles. Through optimization and detailed SAR studies, we developed low nanomolar antagonists, and further characterizations led to the discovery of the clinical candidate compound 43 (RGH-122). The CNS activity of the compound was determined in a 3-chamber social preference test of autism in which RGH-122 successfully enhanced social preference with the lowest effective dose of 1.5 mg/kg.

Discovery and Preclinical Characterization of 3-((4-(4-Chlorophenyl)-7-fluoroquinoline-3-yl)sulfonyl)benzonitrile, a Novel Non-acetylenic Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 5 (mGluR5) Negative Allosteric Modulator for Psychiatric Indications.

Negative allosteric modulators (NAM) of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) have been implicated as a potential pharmacotherapy for a number of psychiatric diseases, including anxiety and depression. Most of the mGluR5 NAM clinical candidates can be characterized by the central acetylenic moiety that connects the terminal pharmacophores. Identification of a sulfoquinoline hit via high throughput screening (HTS) followed by optimization provided a 4-phenyl-3-aryl-sulfoquinoline lead compound with the minimal pharmacophore. Optimization of the core and aryl appendages was performed by scanning and matrix libraries synthesized by the multiple parallel synthesis approach. Biological evaluation of matrix libraries provided a number of potent, metabolically stable, and in vivo active compounds. One of these compounds, 25 showed high efficacy and safety in preclinical in vivo models; this allowed its nomination as a novel, nonacetylenic mGluR5 NAM clinical candidate. Compound 25 was advanced to first-in-man trials for the treatment of psychiatric conditions.

[Change of the nitric oxide synthase activity after administration of neurotoxic compounds in mice]. / A nitrogen-oxid szintáz enzim aktivitásának megváltozása neurotoxinok adását követoen egérben.

The possible contribution of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS) to the development of the neurode-generation came up after the investigations with neurotoxic compounds. 1-Methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) and methamphetamine (METH) have detrimental effect on the dopaminergic neurons. The aim of our study was to examine whether altered nitric oxide synthase (NOS) enzyme activity can be involved in the damage induced by these neurotoxins. The other goal of the study was to investigate the applicability of the measurement of the ratio of NADP+/L-citrulline formed by the enzyme to assess the coupled state of the NOS. Elevated NOS activity in mouse striatum and declined enzyme activity in mouse hippocampus have been found after administration of MPTP Decreased NOS activity in mouse striatum and hippocampus was observed after administration of METH. The ratio of the NADP+/L-citrulline produced by the enzyme provides useful information about the coupling state of the NOS. The ratio in the presence of saturating substrate concentration measured in our experiments was comparable with the data found in the literature. Dramatically increased ratio could be observed in case of decreasing substrate concentration indicating the uncoupled function of the enzyme.

Chiral separation of deprenyl-N-oxide isomers by capillary electrophoresis using various cyclodextrin derivatives.

Chiral separation of deprenyl-N-oxide isomers is presented using capillary electrophoresis in the presence of various cyclodextrin (CD) derivatives. This recently identified metabolite of R-(-)-deprenyl may possess desirable pharmacological activities. The effect of the cavity size and the substituents of the CD are examined on the enantiomer resolution of the compound having an asymmetric center on a heteroatom. The importance of hydrophilic or hydrogen bonding interaction, as well as the position of the interacting groups is demonstrated. Outstanding selectivity and resolution values are achieved using the chargeable carboxymethyl-beta-CD. 2-Hydroxypropyl-beta-CD is also suitable for the enantiomer separation of the analyte. Native beta-CD and carboxyethyl-beta-CD provide only poor enantioselectivity, whereas heptakis-(2,6-di-O-methyl)-beta-CD is capable of separating only the diastereomers. No chiral resolution can be observed in the presence of gamma-CD.

Application of the measurement of oxidized pyridine dinucleotides with high-performance liquid chromatography-fluorescence detection to assay the uncoupled oxidation of NADPH by neuronal nitric oxide synthase.

A rapid and sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography method has been developed for the measurement of oxidized pyridine dinucleotides (NAD+, NADP+) in biological samples following fluorescence derivatization. Under strongly alkaline conditions the pyridinium ring of the nicotinamide moiety reacts with carbonyl compounds, resulting in stable fluorescent products. Upon subsequent addition of concentrated formic acid and treatment with heat, this fluorescence is further amplified and is shifted to higher-wavelength regions. From among the ketones assayed (acetone, ethylmethyl ketone, acetophenone) the condensation product with acetophenone possesses the highest molar relative fluorescence, thus allowing the most sensitive detection in our experimental setup (limit of detection: 0.02pmol/50 microliter injected volume). The fluorescent products have been separated on a reverse-phase C-18 column using 0.1M citric acid (pH 3.2)/acetonitrile (92/8, v/v) as mobile phase. Our method is suitable for assaying NADH- and NADPH-dependent enzyme reactions by quantifying oxidized coenzyme products. As an example, the activity of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS), a NADPH-requiring enzyme, has been assessed by measuring the products NADP+ and l-citrulline at various substrate (l-arginine) concentrations. The rate of the uncoupled NADPH oxidation by nNOS can be estimated from the ratio of NADP+/l-citrulline produced.