Discovery of potent and selective matrix metalloprotease 12 inhibitors for the potential treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an inflammatory lung disease associated with irreversible progressive airflow limitation. Matrix metalloproteinase-12 (MMP-12) has been characterized to be one of the major proteolytic enzymes to induce airway remodeling, destruction of elastin and the aberrant remodeling of damaged alveoli in COPD and asthma. The goal of this project is to develop and identify an orally potent and selective small molecule inhibitor of MMP-12 for treatment of COPD and asthma. Syntheses and structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies of a series of dibenzofuran (DBF) sulfonamides as MMP-12 inhibitors are described. Potent inhibitors of MMP-12 with excellent selectivity against other MMPs were identified. Compound 26 (MMP118), which exhibits excellent oral efficacy in the MMP-12 induced ear-swelling inflammation and lung inflammation mouse models, had been successfully advanced into Development Track status.

Selective inhibitors of tumor progression loci-2 (Tpl2) kinase with potent inhibition of TNF-alpha production in human whole blood.

Tpl2 (cot/MAP3K8) is an upstream kinase of MEK in the ERK pathway. It plays an important role in Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) production and signaling. We have discovered that 8-halo-4-(3-chloro-4-fluoro-phenylamino)-6-[(1H-[1,2,3]triazol-4-ylmethyl)-amino]-quinoline-3-carbonitriles (4) are potent inhibitors of this enzyme. In order to improve the inhibition of TNF-alpha production in LPS-stimulated human blood, a series of analogs with a variety of substitutions around the triazole moiety were studied. We found that a cyclic amine group appended to the triazole ring could considerably enhance potency, aqueous solubility, and cell membrane permeability. Optimization of these cyclic amine groups led to the identification of 8-chloro-4-(3-chloro-4-fluorophenylamino)-6-((1-(1-ethylpiperidin-4-yl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methylamino)quinoline-3-carbonitrile (34). In a LPS-stimulated rat inflammation model, compound 34 showed good efficacy in inhibiting TNF-alpha production.

Inhibitors of tumor progression loci-2 (Tpl2) kinase and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) production: selectivity and in vivo antiinflammatory activity of novel 8-substituted-4-anilino-6-aminoquinoline-3-carbonitriles.

Tumor progression loci-2 (Tpl2) (Cot/MAP3K8) is a serine/threonine kinase in the MAP3K family directly upstream of MEK. Recent studies using Tpl2 knockout mice have indicated an important role for Tpl2 in the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced production of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and other proinflammatory cytokines involved in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Initial 4-anilino-6-aminoquinoline-3-carbonitrile leads showed poor selectivity for Tpl2 over epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) kinase. Using molecular modeling and crystallographic data of the EGFR kinase domain with and without an EGFR kinase-specific 4-anilinoquinazoline inhibitor (erlotinib, Tarceva), we hypothesized that we could diminish the inhibition of EGFR kinase by substitution at the C-8 position of our 4-anilino-6-aminoquinoline-3-carbonitrile leads. The 8-substituted-4-anilino-6-aminoquinoline-3-carbonitriles were prepared from the appropriate 2-substituted 4-nitroanilines. Modifications to the C-6 and C-8 positions led to the identification of compounds with increased inhibition of TNF-alpha release from LPS-stimulated rat and human blood, and these analogues were also highly selective for Tpl2 kinase over EGFR kinase. Further structure-activity based modifications led to the identification of 8-bromo-4-(3-chloro-4-fluorophenylamino)-6-[(1-methyl-1H-imidazol-4-yl)methylamino]quinoline-3-carbonitrile, which demonstrated in vitro as well as in vivo efficacy in inhibition of LPS-induced TNF-alpha production.