New Studies and a Reinvestigation on [4+2] Cycloadditions of (−)-Thebaine: Asymmetrical Diels-Alder Reactions with a Conformationally Fixed Chiral Diene

Diels-Alder Adducts of Morphinan-6,8-Dienes and Their Transformations

6,14-ethenomorphinans are semisynthetic opiate derivatives containing an ethylene bridge between positions 6 and 14 in ring-C of the morphine skeleton that imparts a rigid molecular structure. These compounds represent an important family of opioid receptor ligands in which the 6,14-etheno bridged structural motif originates from a [4 + 2] cycloaddition of morphinan-6,8-dienes with dienophiles. Certain 6,14-ethenomorphinans having extremely high affinity for opioid receptors are often non-selective for opioid receptor subtypes, but this view is now undergoing some revision. The agonist 20R-etorphine and 20R-dihydroetorphine are several thousand times more potent analgesics than morphine, whereas diprenorphine is a high-affinity non-selective antagonist. The partial agonist buprenorphine is used as an analgesic in the management of post-operative pain or in substitution therapy for opiate addiction, sometimes in combination with the non-selective antagonist naloxone. In the context of the current opioid crisis, we communicated a summary of several decades of work toward generating opioid analgesics with lesser side effects or abuse potential. Our summary placed a focus on Diels-Alder reactions of morphinan-6,8-dienes and subsequent transformations of the cycloadducts. We also summarized the pharmacological aspects of radiolabeled 6,14-ethenomorphinans used in molecular imaging of opioid receptors.

Analgesic Properties of New Pyrrolidinomorphinane Derivatives: Revealing Potential Pathways

The pyrrolidinomorphinane derivatives have been found to be active in the writhing tests in mice with the analgesic effect being antagonized by naloxone. This suggests that analgesia is mediated by the opioid system. The compounds also displayed anti-inflammatory activity in formalin and histamine edema experimental models and the data may be evidence for anti-inflammatory activity involvement in the inhibition of pain reaction.