Triaryl bis-sulfones as cannabinoid-2 receptor ligands: SAR studies.

We recently reported that compound 1 is a potent inhibitor of the CB2 receptor with high selectivity over CB1. This paper describes the SAR development for this class of compounds. Variation of the substitution pattern on the aromatic rings, as well as the groups linking them together, led to sub-nanomolar inhibitors of the CB2 receptor, with high selectivity over CB1.