Anti-AIDS agents part 41: synthesis and anti-HIV activity of 3',4'-di-o-(-)-camphanoyl-(+)-cis-khellactone (DCK) lactam analogues

Pharmacological perspectives and molecular mechanisms of coumarin derivatives against virus disease

Infections caused by viruses are one of the foremost causes of morbidity and mortality in the world. Although a number of antiviral drugs are currently used for treatment of various kinds of viral infection diseases, there is still no available therapeutic agent for most of the viruses in clinical practice. Coumarin is a chemical compound which is found naturally in a variety of plants, it can also be synthetically produced possessing diverse biological effects. More recently, reports have highlighted the potential role of coumarin derivatives as antiviral agents. This review outlines the advances in coumarin-based compounds against various viruses including human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis virus, herpes simplex virus, Chikungunya virus and Enterovirus 71, as well as the structure activity relationship and the possible mechanism of action of the most potent coumarin derivatives.

Quinolone derivatives: Potential anti-HIV agent-development and application

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)/human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is one of the largest and most devastating public health pandemics throughout the world. The global pandemic of drug-sensitive HIV and the increasing threat from drug-resistant HIV result in an urgent need to develop more effective anti-HIV candidates. Quinolone represents a significant class of privileged heterocycles, and its derivatives possess promising in vitro and in vivo anti-HIV properties. The 4-quinolone elvitegravir has already been approved for the treatment of HIV; thus, quinolone derivatives might be promising candidates with anti-HIV activity. This review emphasizes quinolone derivatives with potential anti-HIV activity, covering articles published between 1992 and 2019. The structure-activity relationship is also discussed to provide insights for further development of more active quinolone derivatives.

A convenient approach to an advanced intermediate toward the naturally occurring, bioactive 6-substituted 5-hydroxy-4-aryl-1H-quinolin-2-ones

An advanced intermediate for the total synthesis of the 5-hydroxy-4-aryl-3,4-dihydro-1H-quinolin-2-one natural products and a 3,4-bisdesoxy analog of peniprequinolone were synthesized.

The 3,4-dioxygenated 5-hydroxy-4-aryl-quinolin-2(1H)-one alkaloids. Results of 20 years of research, uncovering a new family of natural products

The title alkaloids are discussed. Emphasis is placed on their isolation, source microorganisms and structure, as well as relevant biological activities and synthetic progress.

Anti-AIDS agents 86. Synthesis and anti-HIV evaluation of 2',3'-seco-3'-nor DCP and DCK analogues

In a continuing study of novel anti-HIV agents with drug-like structures and properties, 30 1'-O-, 1'-S-, 4'-O- and 4'-substituted-2',3'-seco-3'-nor DCP and DCK analogues (8-37) were designed and synthesized. All newly synthesized seco-compounds were screened against HIV-1(NL4-3) and a multiple reverse transcriptase (RT) inhibitor-resistant (RTMDR) strain in the TZM-bl cell line, using seco-DCK (7) and 2-ethyl-DCP (4) as controls. Several compounds (14, 18, 19, 22-24, and 32) exhibited potent anti-HIV activity with EC(50) values ranging from 0.93 to 1.93 μM and therapeutic index (TI) values ranging from 20 to 39. 1'-O-Isopropoxy-2',3'-seco-3'-nor-DCP (12) showed the greatest potency among the newly synthesized compounds with EC(50) values of 0.47 and 0.88 μM, and TI of 96 and 51, respectively, against HIV-1(NL4-3) and RTMDR strains. The seco-compounds exhibited better chemical stability in acidic conditions compared with DCP and DCK compounds. Overall, the results suggested that seco-DCP analogues with simplified structures may be more favorable for development as novel anti-HIV candidates.

HIV-1 NNRTIs: structural diversity, pharmacophore similarity, and implications for drug design

Nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) nowadays represent very potent and most promising anti-AIDS agents that specifically target the HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT). However, the effectiveness of NNRTI drugs can be hampered by rapid emergence of drug-resistant viruses and severe side effects upon long-term use. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop novel, highly potent NNRTIs with broad spectrum antiviral activity and improved pharmacokinetic properties, and more efficient strategies that facilitate and shorten the drug discovery process would be extremely beneficial. Fortunately, the structural diversity of NNRTIs provided a wide space for novel lead discovery, and the pharmacophore similarity of NNRTIs gave valuable hints for lead discovery and optimization. More importantly, with the continued efforts in the development of computational tools and increased crystallographic information on RT/NNRTI complexes, structure-based approaches using a combination of traditional medicinal chemistry, structural biology, and computational chemistry are being used increasingly in the design of NNRTIs. First, this review covers two decades of research and development for various NNRTI families based on their chemical scaffolds, and then describes the structural similarity of NNRTIs. We have attempted to assemble a comprehensive overview of the general approaches in NNRTI lead discovery and optimization reported in the literature during the last decade. The successful applications of medicinal chemistry strategies, crystallography, and computational tools for designing novel NNRTIs are highlighted. Future directions for research are also outlined.

Anti-AIDS agents 82: synthesis of seco-(3'R,4'R)-3',4'-di-O-(S)-camphanoyl-(+)-cis-khellactone (DCK) derivatives as novel anti-HIV agents

Thirteen novel seco-DCK analogs (4-16) with several new skeletons were designed, synthesized and screened for in vitro anti-HIV-1 activity. Among them, three compounds (5, 13, and 16) showed moderate activity, and compound 9 exhibited the best activity with an EC(50) value of 0.058 microM and a therapeutic index (TI) of 1000. The activity of 9 was better than that of 4-methyl DCK (2, EC(50): 0.126 microM, TI: 301.2) in the same assay. Additionally, 9 also showed antiviral activity against a multi-RT inhibitor-resistant strain (RTMDR), which is insensitive to most DCK analogs. Compared with 2, compound 9 has a less complex structure, fewer hydrogen-bond acceptors, and a reduced log P value. Therefore, it is likely to exhibit better ADME, and appears to be a promising new lead for further development as an anti-HIV candidate.

Discovery and development of natural product-derived chemotherapeutic agents based on a medicinal chemistry approach

Medicinal plants have long been an excellent source of pharmaceutical agents. Accordingly, the long-term objectives of the author's research program are to discover and design new chemotherapeutic agents based on plant-derived compound leads by using a medicinal chemistry approach, which is a combination of chemistry and biology. Different examples of promising bioactive natural products and their synthetic analogues, including sesquiterpene lactones, quassinoids, naphthoquinones, phenylquinolones, dithiophenediones, neo-tanshinlactone, tylophorine, suksdorfin, DCK, and DCP, will be presented with respect to their discovery and preclinical development as potential clinical trial candidates. Research approaches include bioactivity- or mechanism of action-directed isolation and characterization of active compounds, rational drug design-based modification and analogue synthesis, and structure-activity relationship and mechanism of action studies. Current clinical trial agents discovered by the Natural Products Research Laboratories, University of North Carolina, include bevirimat (dimethyl succinyl betulinic acid), which is now in phase IIb trials for treating AIDS. Bevirimat is also the first in a new class of HIV drug candidates called "maturation inhibitors". In addition, an etoposide analogue, GL-331, progressed to anticancer phase II clinical trials, and the curcumin analogue JC-9 is in phase II clinical trials for treating acne and in development for trials against prostate cancer. The discovery and development of these clinical trial candidates will also be discussed.

Biologically active coumarins as inhibitors of HIV-1

Considerable progress has been made in recent years in the field of drug development against HIV. Many different kinds of natural products, including coumarins, have been found to be active in anti-HIV models and are thus undergoing further investigation. This review demonstrates the variety of coumarins with unique mechanisms of action in the different stages of HIV replication. The discovery and development of coumarins as anti-HIV agents has expanded in the past two decades. Most of the studies have been focused on the inhibitory activity of reverse transcriptase, but anti-integrase and antiprotease activities were also described. The objective of this review is to evaluate data on coumarins’ potent activity with respect to the inhibition of HIV-reverse transcriptase, HIV-integrase or HIV-protease. Recent requirements for potential anti-HIV agents increasingly require adequate definition of the mechanism of action as well as definition of toxic effects and this also applies to natural as well as synthetic coumarins. Structural modification is a powerful tool to increase the potential of bioactive principles. By applying scientific expertise and modern scientific technology, new single compounds will assuredly be developed as potent anti-HIV candidates for world-class new drug development.

Synthesis and anti-angiogenesis activity of coumarin derivatives

A series of 7-diethylaminocoumarin compounds were synthesized and the cytotoxicities were tested against human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) and some cancer cells. We found that the introduction of cyano groups at the 4-position will promote the bioactivity. In particular, compounds 9 and 10 strongly inhibited the proliferation of various cancer cell lines, and 12 and 15 showed a high selectivity for HUVEC. Therefore, these coumarin molecules can be utilized as lead compounds to develop potential nontoxic angiogenesis inhibitors and small molecular ligands to target HUVEC.

Structure-Activity Relationships of Synthetic Coumarins as HIV-1 Inhibitors

HIV/AIDS pandemics is a serious threat to health and development of mankind, and searching for effective anti-HIV agents remains actual. Considerable progress has been made in recent years in the field of drug development against HIV. A lot of structurally different coumarins were found to display potent anti-HIV activity. The current review demonstrates the variety of synthetic coumarins having unique mechanism of action referring to the different stages of HIV replication. Recent studies based on the account of various synthetic coumarins seem to indicate that some of them serve as potent non-nucleoside RT-inhibitors, another as inhibitors of HIV-integrase or HIV-protease. The merits of selecting potential anti-HIV agents to be used in rational combination drugs design and structure-activity relationships are discussed.The scientific community is looking actively for new drugs and combinations for treatment of HIV infection effective for first-line treatment, as well as against resistant mutants. The investigation on chemical anti-HIV agents gives hope and optimism about it. This review article describes recent progress in the discovery, structure modification, and structure-activity relationship studies of potent anti-HIV coumarin derivatives.

Anti-AIDS agents. Part 58: synthesis and anti-HIV activity of 1-thia-di-O-(-)-camphanoyl-(+)-cis-khellactone (1-thia-DCK) analogues

Two 1-thia-DCK analogues (9a and 9b) were synthesized and evaluated for inhibition of HIV-1 replication in H9 lymphocytes. Compound 9a showed excellent anti-HIV activity with an EC(50) value of 0.00012 microM and therapeutic index of 1408000. Compound 9b was less active with EC(50) and TI values of 3.11 microM and 62.3, respectively. The bioassay results indicated that thia-DCK analogues merit attention as potential HIV-1 inhibitors.

Anti-AIDS agents. Part 56: Synthesis and anti-HIV activity of 7-thia-di-O-(−)-camphanoyl-(+)-cis-khellactone (7-thia-DCK) analogs

Two thia-DCK analogs (3a,b) were synthesized and evaluated for inhibition of HIV-1 replication in H9 lymphocytes. Compound 3a showed potent anti-HIV activity with an EC50 value of 0.14 microM and a therapeutic index of 1110. However, the corresponding 6-tert-butyl-substituted compound (3b) showed no suppression. The bioassay results indicated that thia-DCK analogs merit attention as potential HIV-1 inhibitors.

Recent progress in the development of coumarin derivatives as potent anti-HIV agents

Numerous plant-derived compounds have been evaluated for inhibitory effects against HIV replication, and some coumarins have been found to inhibit different stages in the HIV replication cycle. This review article describes recent progress in the discovery, structure modification, and structure-activity relationship studies of potent anti-HIV coumarin derivatives. A dicamphanoyl-khellactone (DCK) analog, which was discovered and developed in our laboratory, and calanolide A are currently in preclinical studies and clinical trials, respectively.

Preliminary structure-antiangiogenic activity relationships of 4-senecioyloxymethyl-6,7-dimethoxycoumarin

Through a systematic modification of the novel angiogenesis inhibitor 4-senecioyloxymethyl-6,7-dimethoxycoumarin (1) we found that a 6,7-dimethoxy moiety is important for bioactivity of 1. Replacement of the lactone functionality in coumarin 1 by an amide decreased its activity. By substitution of the senecioyl chain with various cinnamoyl groups we discovered 6d, bearing a 4-methoxycinnamoyl instead of senecioyl side chain, with inhibitory activity in HUVEC tube formation assay enhanced by one order of magnitude compared to 1. We have also synthesized compound 12, an analogue of 6d, with equipotency and improved water solubility.