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Lewandowski M, Carmina M, Knümann L, Sai M, Willems S, Kasch T, Pollinger J, Knapp S, Marschner JA, Chaikuad A, Merk D. Structure-Guided Design of a Highly Potent Partial RXR Agonist with Superior Physicochemical Properties. J Med Chem 2024; 67:2152-2164. [PMID: 38237049 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c02095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
Retinoid X receptors (RXRs, NR2B1-3) hold therapeutic potential in oncology, neurodegeneration, and metabolic diseases, but traditional RXR agonists mimicking the natural ligand 9-cis retinoic acid exhibit poor physicochemical properties, pharmacokinetics, and safety profiles. Improved RXR ligands are needed to exploit RXR modulation as a promising therapeutic concept in various indications beyond its current role in second-line cancer treatment. Here, we report the co-crystal structure of RXR in complex with a novel pyrimidine-based ligand and the structure-informed optimization of this scaffold to highly potent and highly soluble RXR agonists. Focused structure-activity relationship elucidation and rigidization resulted in a substantially optimized partial RXR agonist with low nanomolar potency, no cytotoxic activity, and very favorable physicochemical properties highlighting this promising scaffold for the development of next-generation RXR targeting drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max Lewandowski
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Melania Carmina
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Università degli Studi di Perugia, 06123 Perugia, Italy
| | - Loris Knümann
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Minh Sai
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Sabine Willems
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Till Kasch
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Julius Pollinger
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University Frankfurt, 60438 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Stefan Knapp
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University Frankfurt, 60438 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Julian A Marschner
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Apirat Chaikuad
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Goethe University Frankfurt, 60438 Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Daniel Merk
- Department of Pharmacy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) München, 81377 Munich, Germany
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