Discriminative stimulus properties of phencyclidine (PCP)-related compounds: correlations with 3H-PCP binding potency measured autoradiographically

Application and assessment of deep learning for the generation of potential NMDA receptor antagonists

Uncompetitive antagonists of the N-methyl d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) have demonstrated therapeutic benefit in the treatment of neurological diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, but some also cause dissociative effects that have led to the synthesis of illicit drugs. The ability to generate NMDAR antagonists in silico is therefore desirable for both new medication development and preempting and identifying new designer drugs. Recently, generative deep learning models have been applied to de novo drug design as a means to expand the amount of chemical space that can be explored for potential drug-like compounds. In this study, we assess the application of a generative model to the NMDAR to achieve two primary objectives: (i) the creation and release of a comprehensive library of experimentally validated NMDAR phencyclidine (PCP) site antagonists to assist the drug discovery community and (ii) an analysis of both the advantages conferred by applying such generative artificial intelligence models to drug design and the current limitations of the approach. We apply, and provide source code for, a variety of ligand- and structure-based assessment techniques used in standard drug discovery analyses to the deep learning-generated compounds. We present twelve candidate antagonists that are not available in existing chemical databases to provide an example of what this type of workflow can achieve, though synthesis and experimental validation of these compounds are still required.

Phencyclidine-Based New Psychoactive Substances

The serendipitous discovery of phencyclidine (PCP) in 1956 sets the stage for significant research efforts that resulted in a plethora of analogs and derivatives designed to explore the biological effects of this class. PCP soon became the prototypical dissociative agent that eventually sneaked through the doors of clinical laboratories and became an established street drug. Estimations suggest that around 14 PCP analogs were identified as "street drugs" in the period between the 1960s and 1990s. Fast forward to the 2000s, and largely facilitated by advancements in electronic forms of communication made possible through the Internet, a variety of new PCP analogs began to attract the attention of communities interested in the collaborative exploration of these substances. Traditionally, as was the case with the first-generation analogs identified in previous decades, the substances explored represented compounds already known in the scientific literature. As the decade of the noughties unfolded, a number of new PCP-derived substances appeared on the scene, which included some analogs that have not been previously recorded in the published literature. The aim of this chapter is to present a brief introductory overview of substances that have materialized as PCP-derived new psychoactive substances (NPS) in recent years and their known pharmacology. Since N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) antagonism is implicated in mediating the subjective and mind-altering effects of many dissociative drugs, additional data are included from other analogs not presently identified as NPS.

Evaluation of the phencyclidine-like discriminative stimulus effects of novel NMDA channel blockers in rats

RATIONALE

Because of their potential therapeutic effects, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists have been investigated for clinical use. Unfortunately, many channel-blocking antagonists have been associated with the production of side effects, including motor impairment and phencyclidine (PCP)-like subjective effects.

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated the relationship between NMDA receptor channel blockade and production of PCP-like side effects by evaluating a variety of NMDA channel blockers with different binding characteristics for the production of PCP-like discriminative stimulus effects.

METHODS

The NMDA channel blockers were tested in rats trained to discriminate 2 mg/kg PCP, i.p., from saline using a standard two-lever drug discrimination procedure with responding under a fixed ratio (FR) 32 schedule of food reinforcement.

RESULTS

The high-affinity channel blockers PD 138289, PD 137889 and FR 115427, produced full, dose-dependent substitution for PCP. Of the moderate-affinity channel blockers, MRZ 2/579 fully substituted for PCP while 1-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline, 8-(2-methoxyphenyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline and alaproclate produced partial substitution. Drugs with the lowest affinity for the channel site and/or higher affinity for non-NMDA CNS sites, antazoline, idazoxan, 1-phenyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline, alpha-benzyl- N-methylphenethylamine and orphenadrine, failed to substitute for PCP.

CONCLUSIONS

The results demonstrate that the cellular actions of the individual channel-blocking NMDA antagonists, in particular affinity for the channel site and NMDA receptor specificity, are important determinants of their discriminative stimulus effects. While higher affinity channel blockers show a correlation between affinity and PCP-like discriminative stimulus effects, behavioral disruption through action at non-NMDA receptors probably prevents achieving sufficient concentrations of the lower affinity compounds at NMDA receptors to produce PCP-like discriminative stimulus effects.

Dizocilpine-like discriminative stimulus effects of low-affinity uncompetitive NMDA antagonists

The dizocilpine-like discriminative stimulus effects of a variety of channel blocking (uncompetitive) N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists were examined in rats trained to discriminate dizocilpine (0.17 mg/kg, i.p) from saline in a two-lever operant procedure. The dissociative anesthetic-type NMDA antagonists dizocilpine (ED50 0.05 mg/kg), phencyclidine (ED50 3.4 mg/kg) and ketamine (ED50 14 mg/kg) showed complete substitution without producing significant decreases in response rates, whereas dexoxadrol (ED50 4.3 mg/kg) also produced complete substitution with a concomitant decrease (35%) in response rate. Similarly, the low-affinity antagonist memantine resulted in complete substitution (ED50 9.7 mg/kg) at doses that significantly reduced (68%) the response rate. All other low-affinity antagonists resulted in either partial or no substitution for the discriminative stimulus effects of dizocilpine at doses that significantly decreased average response rates. These include (ED50 values in parentheses) remacemide (29 mg/kg), the remacemide metabolite 1,2-diphenyl-2-propylamine (ARL 12495) (14 mg/kg), phencylcyclopentylamine (25 mg/kg), dextromethorphan (46 mg/kg), (+/-)-5-aminocarbonyl-10,11-dihydro -5H-dibenzo-[a,d]cyclohepten-5,10-imine (ADCI; no substitution) and levoxadrol (no substitution). We conclude that low-affinity uncompetitive NMDA antagonists have discriminative stimulus properties distinct from dissociative anesthetic-type uncompetitive NMDA antagonists. The lowest-affinity antagonists show virtually no substitution for dizocilpine, whereas the relatively more potent low-affinity antagonists (such as memantine) exhibit greater substitution, but complete substitution is obtained only at rate-reducing doses.

Neuroendocrine responses produced by enantiomeric pairs of drugs that interact with phencyclidine and sigma receptors

The present study characterized the response of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis after the acute administration of enantiomeric pairs of drugs that bind to phencyclidine (PCP) and sigma receptors. Rats were injected with the enantiomers of 1-(1-phenylcyclohexyl)-3-methylpiperidine (PCMP), N-allylnormetazocine (SKF 10,047), dioxadrol (dexoxadrol and levoxadrol) or pentazocine, and plasma levels of adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) and corticosterone were determined by radioimmunoassay. The effects of the enantiomers of PCMP and dioxadrol showed stereospecificity as both (+)-PCMP and dexoxadrol increased plasma levels of ACTH and corticosterone but (-)-PCMP and levoxadrol had no effect. Whereas (-)-pentazocine produced greater responses than (+)-pentazocine, the two enantiomers of SKF 10,047 did not show stereoselectivity. Although the potency of the enantiomers of PCMP and dioxadrol parallel their affinity for binding to PCP receptors, the potency of the enantiomers of pentazocine did not. These results suggest that although the stimulation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis by PCP and drugs with PCP-like activity might be due to interactions with PCP receptors, the effects of pentazocine also involve interactions at other sites.

Dose-dependent effects of D-N-allylnormetazocine on regional cerebral metabolic rates for glucose

Cerebral metabolic patterns produced by different doses of the benzomorphan opioid drug, D-N-allylnormetazocine (D-NANM), were studied using the 2-deoxy-D-[1-14C]glucose method in rats. The lowest dose of D-NANM (0.5 mg/kg) decreased regional cerebral metabolic rates for glucose (rCMRglc) in areas, such as cranial nerve nuclei, that contain high densities of sigma (sigma) receptors. However, higher doses of the drug (2.7 and 5 mg/kg) increased rCMRglc in components of the extrapyramidal motor and limbic systems. Some of these latter areas (e.g. molecular layer of the dentate gyrus, accumbens nucleus, globus pallidus, ventral posterior nucleus of the thalamus) are not enriched in sigma receptors. Reductions in rCMRglc produced by the lowest dose of D-NANM probably reflect direct interactions of the drug with sigma receptors, whereas increases in rCMRglc observed with the highest doses more likely result from effects of D-NANM on PCP receptors.

The discriminative stimulus effect of MK-801 in ketamine-trained rats

MK-801 [(+)-5-methyl-10,11-dihydro-5H-dibenzo(a,d)cyclohepten-5,10-imine maleate] was assessed for its discriminative stimulus properties in rats trained to discriminate ketamine (7 mg/kg) from vehicle. MK-801 generalized to ketamine in a dose dependent manner with a maximum effect at 0.2 mg/kg, while ketamine generalized fully at 10 mg/kg. These results indicate that ketamine and MK-801 may share a common mechanism of action, which is related to the phencyclidine recognition site in the brain.

Comparison of the effects of the acute administration of dexoxadrol, levoxadrol, MK-801 and phencyclidine on body temperature in the rat

Some of the dioxolanes produce pharmacological effects that have much in common with phencyclidine and phencyclidine-like drugs. Dioxadrol can be resolved into two enantiomers, dexoxadrol and levoxadrol. Dexoxadrol has an affinity for phencyclidine receptors that is much greater than that of levoxadrol, but dexoxadrol and levoxadrol have nearly equal affinities for sigma receptors. The systematic analysis of the relative potencies of dexoxadrol and levoxadrol can be used as an approach to define effects mediated by phencyclidine vs sigma receptors. Compounds that act on phencyclidine receptors, as well as affecting behavior, alter body temperature in the rat. The purpose of the present study was to compare and contrast the effects of the acute administration of dexoxadrol, levoxadrol, MK-801 and phencyclidine on body temperature in the rat. Dexoxadrol and levoxadrol (5.0, 10.0, 20.0 or 40.0 mg/kg), MK-801 (0.12, 0.6 or 1.2 mg/kg) or phencyclidine (5.0, 10.0 or 20.0 mg/kg) were administered subcutaneously and body temperature was measured. Both dexoxadrol and MK-801 produced hyperthermia but levoxadrol did not affect body temperature. In contrast to the hyperthermic effects of dexoxadrol and MK-801, phencyclidine produced hypothermia. These findings indicate that hypothermia induced by phencyclidine is not due to interactions with phencyclidine receptors and, while dexoxadrol, MK-801 and phencyclidine may share some similar receptor binding and behavioral characteristics, they can be differentiated on the basis of their effects on body temperature.

Phencyclidine selectively blocks the sustained voltage-dependent potassium conductance in PC12 cells

We investigated the effects of phencyclidine (PCP), a psychotomimetic dissociative anesthetic, and several related drugs on voltage-dependent K+ currents in PC12 cells, a neuron-like clonal cell line derived from a rat pheochromocytoma. Whole-cell voltage clamp recordings demonstrated two kinetically distinct voltage-dependent outward (K+) current components in these cells: a rapidly activating and inactivating component, IA, that was selectively eliminated by 4-aminopyridine (2 mM) and a slowly activating, minimally inactivating (sustained) component, IK, that was specifically blocked by tetraethylammonium (20 mM). PCP (1-100 microM) produced a dose-dependent blockade of both IK and IA, however, at low doses the drug selectively reduced IK with little effect on IA; the IC50s for blockade of IK and IA were 4 and 25 microM, respectively. The blockade of IK was voltage-dependent so that the degree of block decreased with increasing depolarization, indicating that the blocking mechanism is likely one in which the positively charged PCP molecule is drawn into the channel pore. Several PCP related drugs also suppressed IK. Thienyl-PCP (TCP), a drug that is behaviorally more potent than PCP, partially blocked IK at low doses (31% at 1 microM), but even at high doses (25 microM) the degree of block was never as great as that produced by PCP. The optically active PCP congeners (+)-PCMP (1-(1-phenylcyclohexyl)-3-methyl-piperidine) and dexoxadrol were also potent blockers of IK. However, in contrast to the stereospecificity these compounds demonstrate in binding to high-affinity PCP receptors and in eliciting PCP-like behavioral responses, their enantiomers (-)-PCMP and levoxadrol showed similar potencies as the parent compounds in blocking IK. These results demonstrate that PCP and related drugs are powerful, selective blockers of IK in PC12 cells. The structure-activity studies indicate that this effect occurs at a site that is pharmacologically distinct from the behaviorally relevant PCP receptor. Blockade of K+ channels is unlikely to be responsible for the psychotomimetic or anti-convulsant properties of PCP, but could account for the convulsant potential of the drug.