Novel Arginase Inhibitor, AZD0011, Demonstrates Immune Cell Stimulation and Antitumor Efficacy with Diverse Combination Partners.

Antitumor immunity can be hampered by immunosuppressive mechanisms in the tumor microenvironment, including recruitment of arginase (ARG) expressing myeloid cells that deplete l-arginine essential for optimal T-cell and natural killer cell function. Hence, ARG inhibition can reverse immunosuppression enhancing antitumor immunity. We describe AZD0011, a novel peptidic boronic acid prodrug to deliver an orally available, highly potent, ARG inhibitor payload (AZD0011-PL). We demonstrate that AZD0011-PL is unable to permeate cells, suggesting that this compound will only inhibit extracellular ARG. In vivo, AZD0011 monotherapy leads to arginine increases, immune cell activation, and tumor growth inhibition in various syngeneic models. Antitumor responses increase when AZD0011 is combined with anti-PD-L1 treatment, correlating with increases in multiple tumor immune cell populations. We demonstrate a novel triple combination of AZD0011, anti-PD-L1, and anti-NKG2A, and combination benefits with type I IFN inducers, including polyI:C and radiotherapy. Our preclinical data demonstrate AZD0011's ability to reverse tumor immunosuppression and enhance immune stimulation and antitumor responses with diverse combination partners providing potential strategies to increase immuno-oncology therapies clinically.

Asymmetric synthesis from terminal alkenes by cascades of diboration and cross-coupling.

Terminal, monosubstituted alkenes are ideal prospective starting materials for organic synthesis because they are manufactured on very large scales and can be functionalized via a broad range of chemical transformations. Alkenes also have the attractive feature of being stable in the presence of many acids, bases, oxidants and reductants. In spite of these attributes, relatively few catalytic enantioselective transformations have been developed that transform aliphatic α-olefins into chiral products with an enantiomeric excess greater then 90 per cent. With the exception of site-controlled isotactic polymerization of α-olefins, none of these catalytic enantioselective processes results in chain-extending carbon-carbon bond formation to the terminal carbon. Here we describe a strategy that directly addresses this gap in synthetic methodology, and present a single-flask, catalytic enantioselective conversion of terminal alkenes into a number of chiral products. These reactions are facilitated by a neighbouring functional group that accelerates palladium-catalysed cross-coupling of 1,2-bis(boronates) relative to non-functionalized alkyl boronate analogues. In tandem with enantioselective diboration, this reactivity feature transforms alkene starting materials into a diverse array of chiral products. We note that the tandem diboration/cross-coupling reaction generally provides products in high yield and high selectivity (>95:5 enantiomer ratio), uses low loadings (1-2 mol per cent) of commercially available catalysts and reagents, offers an expansive substrate scope, and can address a broad range of alcohol and amine synthesis targets, many of which cannot be easily addressed with current technology.

Direct stereospecific amination of alkyl and aryl pinacol boronates.

The direct amination of alkyl and aryl pinacol boronates is accomplished with lithiated methoxyamine. This reaction directly provides aliphatic and aromatic amines, stereospecifically, and without preactivation of the boronate substrate.

Catalytic enantioselective 1,2-diboration of 1,3-dienes: versatile reagents for stereoselective allylation.

More with boron: The development of catalytic enantioselective 1,2-diboration of 1,3-dienes enables a new strategy for enantioselective carbonyl allylation reactions (see scheme). These reactions occur with outstanding levels of stereoselection and can be applied to both monosubstituted and 1,1-disubstituted dienes. The carbonyl allylation reactions provide enantiomerically enriched functionalized homoallylic alcohol products.

Pt-catalyzed enantioselective diboration of terminal alkenes with B2(pin)2.

The Pt-catalyzed enantioselective addition of bis(pinacolato)diboron to simple monosubstituted alkenes is described. This reaction occurs in the presence of a readily available chiral phosphonite ligand and is effective with a variety of terminal alkene substrates. Importantly, the reaction can operate with catalyst loadings of only 1 mol % Pt. While oxidation of the intermediate 1,2-bis(boronate) ester provides the chiral 1,2-diol as the reaction product, the intermediate may also be subjected to homologation/oxidation to furnish a chiral 1,4-diol as the reaction product.