Tuning the Biological Activity of PI3Kδ Inhibitor by the Introduction of a Fluorine Atom Using the Computational Workflow.

As a member of the class I PI3K family, phosphoinositide 3-kinase δ (PI3Kδ) is an important signaling biomolecule that controls immune cell differentiation, proliferation, migration, and survival. It also represents a potential and promising therapeutic approach for the management of numerous inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. We designed and assessed the biological activity of new fluorinated analogues of CPL302415, taking into account the therapeutic potential of our selective PI3K inhibitor and fluorine introduction as one of the most frequently used modifications of a lead compound to further improve its biological activity. In this paper, we compare and evaluate the accuracy of our previously described and validated in silico workflow with that of the standard (rigid) molecular docking approach. The findings demonstrated that a properly fitted catalytic (binding) pocket for our chemical cores at the induced-fit docking (IFD) and molecular dynamics (MD) stages, along with QM-derived atomic charges, can be used for activity prediction to better distinguish between active and inactive molecules. Moreover, the standard approach seems to be insufficient to score the halogenated derivatives due to the fixed atomic charges, which do not consider the response and indictive effects caused by fluorine. The proposed computational workflow provides a computational tool for the rational design of novel halogenated drugs.

Design, Synthesis, and Development of Pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine Derivatives as a Novel Series of Selective PI3Kδ Inhibitors: Part II-Benzimidazole Derivatives.

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) is the family of lipid kinases participating in vital cellular processes such as cell proliferation, growth, migration, or cytokines production. Due to the high expression of these proteins in many human cells and their involvement in metabolism regulation, normal embryogenesis, or maintaining glucose homeostasis, the inhibition of PI3K (especially the first class which contains four subunits: α, ß, γ, δ) is considered to be a promising therapeutic strategy for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or multiple sclerosis. In this work, we synthesized a library of benzimidazole derivatives of pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine representing a collection of new, potent, active, and selective inhibitors of PI3Kδ, displaying IC50 values ranging from 1.892 to 0.018 µM. Among all compounds obtained, CPL302415 (6) showed the highest activity (IC50 value of 18 nM for PI3Kδ), good selectivity (for PI3Kδ relative to other PI3K isoforms: PI3Kα/δ = 79; PI3Kß/δ = 1415; PI3Kγ/δ = 939), and promising physicochemical properties. As a lead compound synthesized on a relatively large scale, this structure is considered a potential future candidate for clinical trials in SLE treatment.

Design, Synthesis, and Development of pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine Derivatives as a Novel Series of Selective PI3Kδ Inhibitors: Part I-Indole Derivatives.

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase δ (PI3Kδ), a member of the class I PI3K family, is an essential signaling biomolecule that regulates the differentiation, proliferation, migration, and survival of immune cells. The overactivity of this protein causes cellular dysfunctions in many human disorders, for example, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, including asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In this work, we designed and synthesized a new library of small-molecule inhibitors based on indol-4-yl-pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine with IC50 values in the low nanomolar range and high selectivity against the PI3Kδ isoform. CPL302253 (54), the most potent compound of all the structures obtained, with IC50 = 2.8 nM, is a potential future candidate for clinical development as an inhaled drug to prevent asthma.

Hydrogenation of ß-Keto Sulfones to ß-Hydroxy Sulfones with Alkyl Aluminum Compounds: Structure of Intermediate Hydroalumination Products.

ß-Hydroxy sulfones are important in organic synthesis. The simplest method of ß-hydroxy sulfones synthesis is the hydrogenation of ß-keto sulfones. Herein, we report the reducing properties of alkyl aluminum compounds R3Al (R = Et, i-Bu, n-Bu, t-Bu and n-Hex); i-Bu2AlH; Et2AlCl and EtAlCl2 in the hydrogenation of ß-keto sulfones. The compounds i-Bu2AlH, i-Bu3Al and Et3Al are the at best reducing agents of ß-keto sulfones to ß-hydroxy sulfones. In reactions of ß-keto sulfones with aluminum trialkyls, hydroalumination products with ß-hydroxy sulfone ligands [R2AlOC(C6H5)CH2S(O)2(p-R1C6H4]n [where n = 1,2; 2aa: R = i-Bu, R1 = CH3; 2ab: R = i-Bu, R1 = Cl; 2ba: R = Et, R1 = CH3; 2bb: R = Et, R1 = Cl] and {[Et2AlOC(C6H5)CH2S(O)2(p-ClC6H4]∙Et3Al}n3bb were obtained. These complexes in the solid state have a dimeric structure, while in solutions, they appear as equilibrium monomer-dimer mixtures. The hydrolysis of both the isolated 2aa, 2ab, 2ba, 2bb and 3bb and the postreaction mixtures quantitatively leads to pure racemic ß-hydroxy sulfones. Hydroalumination reaction of ß-keto sulfones with alkyl aluminum compounds and subsequent hydrolysis of the complexes is a simple and very efficient method of ß-hydroxy sulfones synthesis.