Coumarins as factor XIIa inhibitors: Potency and selectivity improvements using a fragment-based strategy.

Previously, we described weak coumarin inhibitors of factor XIIa, a promising target for artificial surface-induced thrombosis and various inflammatory diseases. In this work, we used fragment-based drug discovery approach to improve our coumarin series. First, we screened about 200 fragments for the S1 pocket. The S1 pocket of trypsin-like serine proteases, such as factor XIIa, is highly conserved and is known to drive a major part of the association energy. From the screening, we selected fragments displaying a micromolar activity and studied their selectivity on other serine proteases. Then, these fragments were merged to our coumarin templates, leading to the generation of nanomolar inhibitors. The mechanism of inhibition was further studied by mass spectrometry demonstrating the covalent binding through the formation of an acyl enzyme complex. The most potent compound was tested in plasma to evaluate its stability and efficacy on coagulation assays. It exhibited a plasmatic half-life of 1.9 h and a good selectivity for the intrinsic coagulation pathway over the extrinsic one.

Crystal structures of two alanyl-piperidine analogues.

The structure of ethyl 1-[N-(4-methyl-phen-yl)-N-(methyl-sulfon-yl)alan-yl]piperidine-4-carboxyl-ate, C19H28N2O5S, I, a compound of inter-est as activator of Ubiquitin C-terminal Hydro-lase-L1 (UCH-L1), was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD) analysis. In order to find new activators, a derivative of compound I, namely, 1-[N-(4-methyl-phen-yl)-N-(methyl-sulfon-yl)alan-yl]piperidine-4-carb-oxy-lic acid, C17H24N2O5S, II, was studied. The synthesis and crystal structure are also reported. Despite being analogues, different crystal packings are observed. Compound II bears a carb-oxy-lic group, which favors a strong hydrogen bond. A polymorph risk assessment was carried out to study inter-actions in compound II.

Synthesis, crystal structure and conformational analysis of an unexpected [1,5]dithiocine product of aminopyridine and thiovanillin.

The condensation reaction of 2-mercapto-3-methoxybenzaldehyde with 3-aminopyridine afforded an unexpected N-alkylated [1,5]dithiocine instead of the N-salicylideneaniline. The proposed mechanism for this condensation involves a strong intramolecular hydrogen bond between the thiol and the amine groups, leading to a second condensation. The corresponding product, i.e. 4,10-dimethoxy-13-(pyridin-3-yl)-6H,12H-6,12-epiminodibenzo[b,f][1,5]dithiocine methanol 0.463-solvate, C21H18N2O2S2·0.463CH3OH, was characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The supramolecular structure shows π-π stacking and S...S interactions in the crystal packing. Within the asymmetric unit, two geometries of the N atom are observed. Although a planar geometry should be expected, a pyramidal one is observed due to the crystal packing. The presence of the two geometries was further supported by density functional theory (DFT) calculations that show an electronic energy difference of less than 2 kJ mol-1 between the two conformers.

Synthesis of 4- and 5-arylthiazolinethiones as inhibitors of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase.

Docking studies of 4-phenylthiazolinethione on human IDO1 suggest complexation of the heme iron by the exocyclic sulfur atom further reinforced by hydrophobic interactions of the phenyl ring within pocket A of the enzyme. On this basis, chemical modifications were proposed to increase inhibition activity. Synthetic routes had to be adapted and optimized to yield the desired substituted 4- and 5-arylthiazolinethiones. Their biological evaluation shows that 5-aryl regioisomers are systematically less potent than the corresponding 4-aryl analogs. Substitution on the phenyl ring does not significantly increase inhibition potency, except for 4-Br and 4-Cl derivatives.

Quinoides and VEGFR2 TKIs influence the fate of hepatocellular carcinoma and its cancer stem cells.

Bioactivities of quinoides 1-5 and VEGFR2 TKIs 6-10 in hepatocellular cancer (HCC) and cancer stem cells (HCSCs) were studied. The compounds exhibited IC50 values in µM concentrations in HCC cells. Quinoide 3 was able to eradicate cancer stem cells, similar to the action of the stem cell inhibitor DAPT. However, the more cytotoxic VEFGR TKIs (IC50: 0.4-3.0 µM) including sorafenib, which is the only FDA approved drug for the treatment of HCC, enriched the hepatocellular cancer stem cell population by 2-3 fold after treatment. An aggressiveness factor (AF) was proposed to quantify the characteristics of drug candidates for their ability to eradicate the CSC subpopulation. Considering the tumour heterogeneity and marker positive cancer stem cell like subpopulation enrichment upon treatments in patients, this study emphasises the importance of the chemotherapeutic agent choice acting differentially on all the subpopulations including marker-positive CSCs.

Conformation and tautomerism of methoxy-substituted 4-phenyl-4-thiazoline-2-thiones: a combined crystallographic and ab initio investigation.

4-Phenyl-4-thiazoline-2-thiol is an active pharmaceutical compound, one of whose activities is as a human indolenamine dioxygenase inhibitor. It has been shown recently that in both the solid state and the gas phase, the thiazolinethione tautomer should be preferred. As part of both research on this lead compound and a medicinal chemistry program, a series of substituted arylthiazolinethiones have been synthesized. The molecular conformations and tautomerism of 4-(2-methoxyphenyl)-4-thiazoline-2-thione and 4-(4-methoxyphenyl)-4-thiazoline-2-thione, both C10H9NOS2, are reported and compared with the geometry deduced from ab initio calculations [PBE/6-311G(d,p)]. Both the crystal structure analyses and the calculations establish the thione tautomer for the two substituted arylthiazolinethiones. In the crystal structure of the 2-methoxyphenyl regioisomer, the thiazolinethione unit was disordered over two conformations. Both isomers exhibit similar hydrogen-bond patterns [R2(2)(8) motif] and form dimers. The crystal packing is further reinforced by short S...S interactions in the 2-methoxyphenyl isomer. The conformations of the two regioisomers correspond to stable geometries calculated from an ab initio energy-relaxed scan.

New Insights into the Synthesis and Biological Activity of the Pamamycin Macrodiolides.

After a brief account of the biological properties of pamamycins, this review highlights the latest developments on the total synthesis and the biosynthesis of these macrodiolides.

Solid-state-trapped reactive ammonium carbamate self-derivative salts of prolinamide.

Single crystals for two polymorphs of the ammonium carbamate self-derivative salt of prolinamide have been successfully obtained and characterized. Decarbonation of the carbamate salts was monitored by calorimetry, confirming stabilization of the reactive carbonated adducts in the solid state. Sublimation of the salts afforded crystals of prolinamide, leading to the first crystal structure of this otherwise common molecule. Reactivity of the ammonium carbamate self-derivative salt is further illustrated by the observation of a series of derived products, including dehydroprolinamide, a methylene-bridged prolinamide, and a bicyclic derivative. Crystal structures of these products display distinct amidic and/or non-amidic hydrogen bonding. This study emphasizes the reactivity of carbonated amines stabilized in the solid and opens perspectives for a systematic study of (solid-state) reactions involving these trapped reactive species.

Hemisynthesis of two marine cheilanthane sesterterpenes from (-)-sclareol: first enantioselective synthesis of petrosaspongiolide R.

The synthesis of two marine sponge metabolites 5 and 8 from naturally occurring (-)-sclareol is described here. The sesterterpenolide (5) is synthetised for the first time, establishing the absolute configuration of this compound. The key intermediate, aldehyde (10), was obtained from (-)-sclareol in good overall yields. The use of Katsumura's Wittig reagent and subsequent photochemical oxidation delivered the sesterterpenolide (8), which was chemoselectively epoxidized on exocyclic terminal olefin using the oxaziridinium salt (14) and transformed in four steps to carboxylic acid (5).

[3 + 2] Cycloaddition of acetylenes with azides to give 1,4-disubstituted 1,2,3-triazoles in a modular flow reactor.

The cycloaddition of acetylenes with azides to give the corresponding 1,4-disubstituted 1,2,3-triazoles is reported using immobilised reagents and scavengers in pre-packed glass tubes in a modular flow reactor.