Structure-Activity Relationships of Pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidin-7(4H)-ones as Antitubercular Agents.

Pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidin-7(4H)-one was identified through high-throughput whole-cell screening as a potential antituberculosis lead. The core of this scaffold has been identified several times previously and has been associated with various modes of action against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). We explored this scaffold through the synthesis of a focused library of analogues and identified key features of the pharmacophore while achieving substantial improvements in antitubercular activity. Our best hits had low cytotoxicity and showed promising activity against Mtb within macrophages. The mechanism of action of these compounds was not related to cell-wall biosynthesis, isoprene biosynthesis, or iron uptake as has been found for other compounds sharing this core structure. Resistance to these compounds was conferred by mutation of a flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD)-dependent hydroxylase (Rv1751) that promoted compound catabolism by hydroxylation from molecular oxygen. Our results highlight the risks of chemical clustering without establishing mechanistic similarity of chemically related growth inhibitors.

Efforts towards the development of new antitubercular agents: potential for thiolactomycin based compounds.

Development of new chemotherapeutic drugs is the need of the hour to improve tuberculosis control, particularly in the developing world. In the last fourty years no new compound has been brought to the market for the treatment of tuberculosis. However, in recent years there is an enhanced activity in the research and development of new drugs for TB. Some compounds are presently in clinical development, while others are being investigated pre-clinically in an attempt to explore new molecules for the target based treatment of TB. Simultaneously some new targets are being identified and validated for their practical usefulness. Structures based on thiolactomycin could have considerable potential in the development of target based anti-TB agents. The present review provides an overview of the drugs that are being clinically used and the compounds that are in advanced stages of clinical as well as preclinical studies. We have also attempted to highlight the efforts that are being made in the development of new molecules based on thiolactomycin as lead compound, including studies from this laboratory.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of conformationally flexible as well as restricted dimers of monastrol and related dihydropyrimidones.

A series of conformationally flexible and restricted dimers of monastrol as well as related dihydropyrimidones have been synthesized by employing one-pot Biginelli multicomponent reaction. These dimers have been evaluated for cytotoxic potency against selected human cancer cell lines and some of the compounds have exhibited more cytotoxic potency than the parent monastrol. Further, the DNA binding ability by thermal denaturation studies and antimicrobial activities of these compounds are also discussed.

Anti-tubercular agents. Part 6: synthesis and antimycobacterial activity of novel arylsulfonamido conjugated oxazolidinones.

As a part of investigation of new anti-tubercular agents in this laboratory, herein we describe the synthesis of a new class of arylsulfonamido conjugated oxazolidinones. The in vitro activity of these conjugated (6a-f, 7a-d, 9a-c and 11a-c) molecules against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H(37)Rv by using rifampicin and linezolide as positive controls is discussed, compounds 7c and 9a-c are found to be the most active members in this series. Further, cytotoxicity of the potent conjugates of the series (7c, and 9a-c) was evaluated on human foreskin fibroblast (HFF) cells by using MTT assay. Finally, these studies suggest that compounds 7c and 9a may serve as promising lead scaffolds for further generation of new as anti-TB agents.

Search for new and novel chemotherapeutics for the treatment of human malignancies.

One of the hallmarks of cancer is the uncontrolled cell proliferation which causes more deaths among the human diseases throughout the globe. One in eight deaths worldwide are due to cancer, it is the second and third leading cause of death in economically developed and developing countries, respectively. As it is caused by both external and internal factors, a balanced approach to cancer control includes prevention, early detection, and effective treatment. In the treatment of cancer, chemotherapy is one of the practical methods and is widely used employing drugs that can destroy cancer cells by impeding their growth and reproduction. Despite the great strides made in the treatment of cancer over the past 50 years, it continues to be a major health concern and therefore, extensive efforts have been devoted to search for new scaffolds to develop chemotherapeutics. In this perspective, over the past two decades from this laboratory extensive efforts have been made in the development of new chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of cancer. In this review, glimpses on types of current chemotherapeutic agents based on their action of inhibition and the new molecules that are being developed based on the scaffolds such as pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]benzodiazepines, podophyllotoxins, benzothiadiazine 1,1-dioxides, naphthalimides and monastrol across the world as well as in this laboratory have been articulated.

Anti-tubercular agents. Part 5: synthesis and biological evaluation of benzothiadiazine 1,1-dioxide based congeners.

In an effort to discover new and effective chemotherapeutic agents from this laboratory for the treatment of tuberculosis, here in we describe the synthesis and biological evaluation of a series of novel benzothiadiazine 1,1-dioxide (BTD) based congeners by using rifampicin, streptomycin; ciprofloxacin and amphotericin as positive controls. Further, to understand structural requirements for exploring the structure activity relationship of BTDs, cytotoxicity and in vivo study of recently reported potent molecule 4 (MIC = 1 microg/mL) is also discussed.