One-Pot Oxidative Amidation of Aldehydes via the Generation of Nitrile Imine Intermediates.

A one-pot procedure for the oxidative amidation of aldehydes via the in situ generation of reactive nitrile imine (NI) intermediates has been developed. Distinct from our progenitor processes, mechanistic and control experiments revealed that the NI undergoes rapid oxidation to an acyl diazene species, which then facilitates N-acylation of an amine. A range of substrates have been explored, including application in the synthesis of pharmaceutically relevant compounds.

Synthesis and Evaluation of Small Molecule Inhibitors of the Androgen Receptor N-Terminal Domain.

The androgen receptor (AR) is central to prostate cancer pathogenesis and has been extensively validated as a drug target. However, small-molecule anti-androgen therapies remain limited due to resistance and will eventually fail to suppress tumor growth, resulting in progression to castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). The intrinsically disordered N-terminal domain (NTD) is crucial for AR transactivation and has been investigated as a suitable target in the presence of ligand binding domain mutations. A screening campaign identified biaryl isoxazole compound 7 as a weak inhibitor of the AR NTD. A library of biaryl analogues were synthesized, and their biological activities were assessed in a VCaP cell-based luciferase reporter gene assay. A structure-activity relationship (SAR) study revealed that indazole analogue 16 exhibited increased potency and favorable physicochemical properties with a benchmarked pharmacokinetic profile, providing a suitable starting point for further optimization of 16 as a CRPC therapeutic in the presence of AR mutations.

Current and emerging approaches to noncompetitive AR inhibition.

The androgen receptor (AR) has been shown to be a key determinant in the pathogenesis of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). The current standard of care therapies targets the ligand-binding domain of the receptor and can afford improvements to life expectancy often only in the order of months before resistance occurs. Emerging preclinical and clinical compounds that inhibit receptor activity via differentiated mechanisms of action which are orthogonal to current antiandrogens show promise for overcoming treatment resistance. In this review, we present an authoritative summary of molecules that noncompetitively target the AR. Emerging small molecule strategies for targeting alternative domains of the AR represent a promising area of research that shows significant potential for future therapies. The overall quality of lead candidates in the area of noncompetitive AR inhibition is discussed, and it identifies the key chemotypes and associated properties which are likely to be, or are currently, positioned to be first in human applications.

Functionalized Tetrazoles as Latent Active Esters in the Synthesis of Amide Bonds.

We report the use of N-2,4-dinitrophenyltetrazoles as latent active esters (LAEs) in the synthesis of amide bonds. Activating the tetrazole generates an HOBt-type active ester without the requirement for exogenous coupling agents. The methodology was widely applicable to a range of substrates, with up to quantitative yields obtained. The versatility and functional group tolerance were exemplified with the one-step synthesis of various pharmaceutical agents and the N-acylation of resin-bound peptides.

Amide Bond Formation via the Rearrangement of Nitrile Imines Derived from N-2-Nitrophenyl Hydrazonyl Bromides.

We report how the rearrangement of highly reactive nitrile imines derived from N-2-nitrophenyl hydrazonyl bromides can be harnessed for the facile construction of amide bonds. This amidation reaction was found to be widely applicable to the synthesis of primary, secondary, and tertiary amides and was used as the key step in the synthesis of the lipid-lowering agent bezafibrate. The orthogonality and functional group tolerance of this approach was exemplified by the N-acylation of unprotected amino acids.

Synthetic analogues of cyanobacterial alkaloid cylindrospermopsin and their toxicological activity.

Cylindrospermopsin (CYN) is a naturally occurring alkaloid produced by a variety of cyanobacteria and known to induce oxidative stress-mediated toxicity in eukaryotic cells. Despite extensive research on the mechanism of CYN toxicity, an understanding of the structural features responsible for this toxicity and the mechanism by which it can enter the cell are still not clear. It was established that the presence of both the uracil and guanidine groups is essential in biological activity of CYN whilst not much is known in this regard on the role of tether that separates them and the attached hydroxyl group. Therefore, in the present study we have prepared three synthetic analogues possessing uracil and guanidine groups separated by a variable length tether (4-6 carbons) and containing a hydroxyl function in a position orientation to CYN, together with a tetracyclic analogue of CYN lacking the hydroxyl group at C-7. The toxicity of these compounds was then compared with CYN and guanidinoacetate (GAA; the primary substrate in CYN biosynthesis) in an in vitro model using human neutrophils isolated from healthy subjects. The lowest activity measured by means of reactive oxygen species generation, lipid peroxidation and cell death was observed for GAA and the tetracyclic analogue. The greatest toxicity was found in an analogue with a 6-carbon tether, but all three analogues and CYN caused rapid onset of redox imbalance. These results add to the general understanding of CYN toxicity and preliminary findings suggest that the -OH group at C-7 may be significant for the cellular transport of CYN and/or be involved in its toxic activity inside the cell, a hypothesis which requires further testing.