Design, synthesis, and SAR of anthranilamide-based factor Xa inhibitors with improved functional activity

Competing HB acceptors: an extensive NMR investigations corroborated by single crystal XRD and DFT calculations

A series of N-benzoylanthranilamide derivatives have been synthesized with the substitution of competitive HB acceptors and investigated by NMR spectroscopy and single crystal XRD. The interesting rivalry for HB acceptance between [double bond splayed left]C[double bond, length as m-dash]O and X (F or OMe) is observed in the investigated molecules which leads to an unusual increase in the electron density at the site of one of the NH protons, reflecting in the high field resonance in the 1H NMR spectrum. The NMR experimental findings and single crystal XRD are further reinforced by the DFT studies.

1,3-Diazepine: A privileged scaffold in medicinal chemistry

Privileged structures have been widely used as effective templates for drug discovery. While benzo-1,4-diazepine constitutes the first historical example of such a structure, the 1,3 analogue is just as rich in terms of applications in medicinal chemistry. The 1,3-diazepine moiety is present in numerous biological active compounds including natural products, and is used to design compounds displaying a large range of biological activities. It is present in the clinically used anticancer compound pentostatin, in several recent FDA approved β-lactamase inhibitors (e.g., avibactam) and also in coformycin, a natural product known as a ring-expanded purine analogue displaying antiviral and anticancer activities. Several other 1,3-diazepine containing compounds have entered into clinical trials. This heterocyclic structure has been and is still widely used in medicinal chemistry to design enzyme inhibitors, GPCR ligands, and so forth. This review endeavours to highlight the main use of the 1,3-diazepine scaffold and its derivatives, and their applications in medicinal chemistry, drug design, and therapy. We will focus more particularly on the development of enzyme inhibitors incorporating this scaffold, with a strong emphasis on the molecular interactions involved in the inhibition mechanism.

Synthesis and Thrombin, Factor Xa and U46619 Inhibitory Effects of Non-Amidino and Amidino N²-Thiophenecarbonyl- and N²-Tosylanthranilamides

Thrombin (factor IIa) and factor Xa (FXa) are key enzymes at the junction of the intrinsic and extrinsic coagulation pathways and are the most attractive pharmacological targets for the development of novel anticoagulants. Twenty non-amidino N²-thiophencarbonyl- and N²-tosyl anthranilamides 1–20 and six amidino N²-thiophencarbonyl- and N²-tosylanthranilamides 21–26 were synthesized to evaluate their activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and prothrombin time (PT) using human plasma at a concentration of 30 µg/mL in vitro. As a result, compounds 5, 9, and 21–23 were selected to study the further antithrombotic activity. The anticoagulant properties of 5, 9, and 21–23 significantly exhibited a concentration-dependent prolongation of in vitro PT and aPTT, in vivo bleeding time, and ex vivo clotting time. These compounds concentration-dependently inhibited the activities of thrombin and FXa and inhibited the generation of thrombin and FXa in human endothelial cells. In addition, data showed that 5, 9, and 21–23 significantly inhibited thrombin catalyzed fibrin polymerization and mouse platelet aggregation and inhibited platelet aggregation induced by U46619 in vitro and ex vivo. Among the derivatives evaluated, N-(3′-amidinophenyl)-2-((thiophen-2′′-yl)carbonylamino)benzamide (21) was the most active compound.

Qualitative and quantitative pharmacophore-similarity assessment of anthranilamide-based factor Xa inhibitors: applications on similar molecules with identical biological endpoints

It is a conventional practice to exclude molecules with identical biological endpoints to avoid bias in the resulting hypothesis model. Despite the diverse chemical functionalities, the receptor interactions of such molecules are often unexplored. The present study motivates the selection of these molecules diversified by single atom or functional group compared to internal molecules as external set and helps in the understanding of corresponding effects toward receptor interactions and biological endpoints. Applied on anthranilamide-series of factor Xa analogs, the inhibitory activities were correlated (r(2) = 0.99) and validated (q(2) = 0.68) with distance-based pharmacophore descriptors using support vector machine. The selected external set molecules exhibited better prediction accuracy by securing activities less than one residual threshold. The effect on inhibitory activity was assessed by the examination of pharmacophore-similarity and its interactions with key residues of Human factor Xa enzyme using molecular docking approach. Furthermore, qualitative pharmacophore models were developed on the subset of molecular dataset divided as most actives, moderately actives and least actives, to recognize crucial activity governing pharmacophore features. The outcome of this study will bring new insights about the requirements of pharmacophore features and prioritizes its selection in the design and optimization of potent Xa inhibitors.

Discovery of imidazo[1,5-c]imidazol-3-ones: weakly basic, orally active factor Xa inhibitors

The coagulation enzyme factor Xa (FXa) has been recognized as a promising target for the development of new antithrombotic agents. We previously found compound 1 to be an orally bioavailable FXa inhibitor in fasted monkeys; however, 1 showed poor bioavailability in rats and fed monkeys. To work out the pharmacokinetic problems, we focused our synthetic efforts on the chemical conversion of the 4-(imidazo[1,2- a]pyridin-5-yl)piperazine moiety of 1 to imidazolylpiperidine derivatives (fused and nonfused), which resulted in the discovery of the weakly basic imidazo[1,5- c]imidazol-3-one 3q as a potent and selective FXa inhibitor. Compound 3q showed favorable oral bioavailability in rats and monkeys under both fasted and fed conditions and antithrombotic efficacy in a rat model of venous thrombosis after oral administration, without a significant increase in bleeding time (unlike warfarin). On the basis of these promising properties, compound 3q was selected for further evaluation.

Structure-activity relationships of anthranilamide-based factor Xa inhibitors containing piperidinone and pyridinone P4 moieties

Introduction of the phenyl piperidinone and phenyl pyridinone P4 moieties in the anthranilamide scaffold led to potent, selective, and orally bioavailable inhibitors of factor Xa. Anthranilamide 28 displayed comparable efficacy to apixaban in the rabbit arteriovenous-shunt (AV) thrombosis model.

Anthranilamide inhibitors of factor Xa

SAR about the B-ring of a series of N(2)-aroyl anthranilamide factor Xa (fXa) inhibitors is described. B-ring o-aminoalkylether and B-ring p-amine probes of the S1' and S4 sites, respectively, afforded picomolar fXa inhibitors that performed well in in vitro anticoagulation assays.

Substituted thiophene-anthranilamides as potent inhibitors of human factor Xa

A series of thiophene-containing non-amidine factor Xa inhibitors is described. Simple methyl-substituted thiophene analogs were relatively weak inhibitors. However, introduction of hydrophilic substituents at C-4 or C-5 of the thiophene afforded inhibitors with low nanomolar potency. Optimization of the thiophene substituent at C-4 afforded subnanomolar inhibitors with improved in vitro anticoagulant activity. Incorporating basic amine substituents on the thiophene increased hydrophilicity and improved anticoagulant activity. The pharmacokinetic profile of one inhibitor was evaluated in dogs, and the X-ray crystal structure of this compound bound to factor Xa provides insight into the observed SAR for binding to factor Xa.

QSAR studies of N1-(5-chloro-2-pyridyl)-2-{[4-(alkyl methyl)benzoyl]amino}-5-chlorobenzamide analogs

Factor X(a) has materialized as a key enzyme for the intervention of blood coagulation cascade and for the development of new antithrombotic agents. It is the lone enzyme that is responsible for the production of thrombin and is therefore an attractive target for the control of thrombus formation. The biological activities (log1/IC(50)) of anthranilamide-based factor X(a) inhibitors were quantitatively analyzed in terms of physicochemical parameters by the regression analysis. Structural requirements for maximal potency were derived from the results of a quantitative structure activity relationship analysis. The leave-one-out cross-validation method was used to judge the predictive power of final equations.

Selective and orally bioavailable phenylglycine tissue factor/factor VIIa inhibitors

We describe the structure-based design and synthesis of highly potent, orally bioavailable tissue factor/factor VIIa inhibitors which interfere with the coagulation cascade by selective inhibition of the extrinsic pathway.

Identification of novel functional inhibitors of 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type III (17beta-HSD3)

BACKGROUND

Endocrine therapy of prostate cancer (PCa) relies on agents which disrupt the biosynthesis of testosterone in the testis and/or by direct antagonism of active hormone on the androgen receptor (AR) in non-gonadal target tissues of hormone action such as the prostate.

METHODS

In an effort to evaluate new therapies which could inhibit gonadal or non-gonadal testosterone biosynthesis, we developed high throughput biochemical and cellular screening assays to identify inhibitors of 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type III (17beta-HSD3), the enzyme catalyzing the conversion of androstenedione (AdT) to testosterone.

RESULTS

Initial screening efforts identified a natural product, 18beta-glycyrrhetinic acid, and a novel derivative of AdT, 3-O-benzylandrosterone, as potent inhibitors of the enzyme. Further efforts led to the identification of several classes of non-steroidal, low molecular weight compounds that potently inhibited 17beta-HSD3 enzymatic activity. One of the most potent classes of 17beta-HSD3 inhibitors was a series of anthranilamide small molecules identified from a collection of compounds related to non-steroidal modulators of nuclear hormone receptors. The anthranilamide based 17beta-HSD3 inhibitors were exemplified by BMS-856, a compound displaying low nanomolar inhibition of 17beta-HSD3 enzymatic activity. In addition, this series of compounds displayed potent inhibition of 17beta-HSD3-mediated cellular conversion of AdT to testosterone and inhibited the 17beta-HSD3-mediated conversion of testosterone necessary to promote AR-dependent transcription.

CONCLUSIONS

The identification of non-steroidal functional inhibitors of 17beta-HSD3 may be a useful complementary approach for the disruption of testosterone biosynthesis in the treatment of PCa.

Design, synthesis, and SAR of anthranilamide-based factor Xa inhibitors incorporating substituted biphenyl P4 motifs

Anthranilamides 4 and 5 were designed and synthesized as selective and orally bioavailable factor Xa inhibitors. Structural modifications aimed at lowering their lipophilicity were performed at the central phenyl ring and at the S4 binding biphenyl region by incorporating water solublizing substituents. The resulting compounds (e.g., 7, 8, 14, 30a, and 32b) are highly potent in vitro, and show improved activity in human plasma-based thrombin generation assay.