Novel protoporphyrinogen oxidase inhibitors: 3H-pyrazolo[3,4-d][1,2,3]triazin-4-one derivatives

Synthesis and Biological Activity Evaluation of Benzoxazinone-Pyrimidinedione Hybrids as Potent Protoporphyrinogen IX Oxidase Inhibitor

Protoporphyrinogen IX oxidase (PPO/Protox, E.C. 1.3.3.4) is recognized as one of the most important targets for herbicide discovery. In this study, we report our ongoing research efforts toward the discovery of novel PPO inhibitors. Specifically, we identified a highly potent new compound series containing a pyrimidinedione moiety and bearing a versatile building block-benzoxazinone scaffold. Systematic bioassays resulted in the discovery of compound 7af, ethyl 4-(7-fluoro-6-(3-methyl-2,6-dioxo-4-(trifluoromethyl)-3,6-dihydropyrimidin-1(2H)-yl)-3-oxo-2,3-dihydro-4H-benzo[b][1,4]oxazin-4-yl)butanoate, which exhibited broad-spectrum and excellent herbicidal activity at the dosage of 37.5 g a.i./ha through postemergence application. The inhibition constant (Ki) value of 7af to Nicotiana tabacum PPO (NtPPO) was 14 nM, while to human PPO (hPPO), it was 44.8 μM, indicating a selective factor of 3200, making it the most selective PPO inhibitor to date. Moreover, molecular simulations further demonstrated the selectivity and the binding mechanism of 7af to NtPPO and hPPO. This study not only identifies a candidate that showed excellent in vivo bioactivity and high safety toward humans but also provides a paradigm for discovering PPO inhibitors with improved performance through molecular simulation and structure-guided optimization.

Synthesis of new pyrazolo[1,2,3]triazines by cyclative cleavage of pyrazolyltriazenes

We describe the synthesis of so far synthetically not accessible 3,6-substituted-4,6-dihydro-3H-pyrazolo[3,4-d][1,2,3]triazines as nitrogen-rich heterocycles. The target compounds were obtained in five steps, including an amidation and a cyclative cleavage reaction as key reaction steps. The introduction of two side chains allowed a variation of the pyrazolo[3,4-d][1,2,3]triazine core with commercially available building blocks, enabling the extension of the protocol to gain other derivatives straightforwardly. Attempts to synthesize 3,7-substituted-4,7-dihydro-3H-pyrazolo[3,4-d][1,2,3]triazines, the regioisomers of the successfully gained 3,6-substituted 4,6-dihydro-3H-pyrazolo[3,4-d][1,2,3]triazines, were not successful under similar conditions due to the higher stability of the triazene functionality in the regioisomeric precursors and thus, the failure of the removal of the protective group.

Synthesis and Activity Investigation of Novel 1H-Purin-6(9H)-one and 3H-Imidazo[4,5-d][1,2,3]triazin-4(7H)-one Derivatives

Novel 1H-purin-6(9H)-one (D) and 3H-imidazo[4,5-d][1,2,3]trazin-4(7H)-one (E) derivatives were designed, synthesized, and characterized by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR and high-resolution mass spectrometry spectra. Their herbicidal activity bioassay showed that compound 7d exhibited relatively good activity with 70.4% inhibition rate against Amaranthus retroflexus in postemergence treatments at 1500 g/ha. Antitumor activity indicated that most of the title compounds displayed potent antitumor activity at 20 μM, among all of the promising compounds possessing lower IC₅₀ values than that of temozolomide, compound 7i demonstrated highest activity inhibiting both HepG-2 and U-118 MG cell lines with IC₅₀ values of 2.0 and 3.8 μM, respectively. The structure-activity relationship analysis revealed that introduction of halogen atoms, a bulky bridging bond between benzene ring and nitrogen atom, longer R² substituents could contribute to the improvement of antitumor activity. Analysis suggested that compound 7i might have potential as new highly active antitumor agent. Overall, D series had better anticancer activities than E series derivatives.

Novel HPPD inhibitors: triketone 2H-benzo[b][1,4]oxazin-3(4H)-one analogs

BACKGROUND

Herbicides that inhibit 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPPD, EC 1.13.11.27) are very important for grass weed control. In order to discover novel HPPD herbicides, a series of triketone 2H-benzo[b] oxazin-3(4H)-one analogs was designed and synthesized.

RESULTS

In comparison with the commercial triketone HPPD herbicide mesotrione (IC₅₀ = 0.252 μM), some of these new triketone analogs displayed excellent HPPD inhibitory potency in vitro, for example B39 (IC₅₀ = 0.172 μM) and B41 (IC₅₀ = 0.156 μM). In addition, some of these compounds exhibited pre- and post-emergence herbicidal activity similar to mesotrione when applied at 375 g/ha.

CONCLUSION

Many of the title compounds described in this paper could be important lead structures for the further development of novel HPPD herbicides. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Synthesis and Herbicidal Activity of Pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine-2,4-dione-Benzoxazinone Hybrids as Protoporphyrinogen Oxidase Inhibitors

To search for new protoporphyrinogen oxidase (PPO, EC 1.3.3.4) inhibitors with improved bioactivity, a series of novel pyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine-2,4-dione-benzoxazinone hybrids, 9-13, were designed and synthesized. Several compounds with improved tobacco PPO (mtPPO)-inhibiting and promising herbicidal activities were found. Among them, the most potent compound, 3-(7-fluoro-3-oxo-4-(prop-2-yn-1-yl)-3,4-dihydro-2H-benzo[b][1,4] oxazin-6-yl)-1-methylpyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine-2,4(1H,3H)-dione, 11q, with a Ki value of 0.0074 μM, showed six times more activity than flumioxazin (Ki = 0.046 μM) against mtPPO. Compound 11q displayed a strong and broad spectrum of weed control at 37.5-150 g of active ingredient (ai)/ha by both post- and pre-emergence application, which was comparable to that of flumioxazin. 11q was safe to maize, soybean, peanut, and cotton at 150 g ai/ha, and selective to rice and wheat at 75 g ai/ha by pre-emergence application, indicating potential applicability in these fields.

Reaction of alkenecarboxylic acids with isocyanates via rhodium(iii)-catalyzed C–H activation: a versatile route to cyclic imides

A versatile cascade route to cyclic imides via direct functionalization of the β-alkenyl C–H bond of alkenoic acids was developed.

Synthesis and Herbicidal Activity of 5-Heterocycloxy-3-methyl-1-substituted-1H-pyrazoles

With the objective of finding valuable herbicidal candidates, a series of new 5-heterocycloxy-3-methyl-1-substituted-1H-pyrazoles were synthesized and their herbicidal activities were evaluated. The bioassay results showed that some compounds exhibited excellent herbicidal activities at the concentration of 100 mg/L, and compound 5-chloro-2-((3-methyl-1-(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl)-1H-pyrazol-5-yl)oxy)pyrimidine showed bleaching activity to green weeds. In greenhouse conditions, this compound also showed excellent post-emergence herbicidal effect against Digitaria sanguinalis L. at the dosage of 750 g a. i. ha⁻¹.

Synthesis and biological evaluations of a series of thaxtomin analogues

Thaxtomins are a unique family of phytotoxins with unique 4-nitroindole and diketopiperazine fragments possessing potential herbicidal activities. This work presents the total synthesis of natural product thaxtomin C and its analogues. The extensive structure-activity relationship study screens four effective compounds, including thaxtomin A and thaxtomin C. It is indicated that 4-nitro indole fragment is essential for phytotoxicity, while benzyl and m-hydroxybenzyl substituents on the diketopiperazine ring are favorable for the efficacy. The N-methylations on indole and diketopiperazine show weak influence on the herbicidal activities. The four selected compounds show effective herbicidal activities against Brassica campestris, Amaranthus retroflexus, and Abutilon theophrasti, which are comparable or better than dichlobenil, even at a dosage of 187.5 g ha(-1). Moreover, these four compounds show good crop-selective properties to different crops and exhibit moderate protoporphyrinogen oxidase (PPO) enzyme inhibition. The antifungal results indicate that thaxtomin C displays inhibition to a wide range of fungi.

Understanding resistance mechanism of protoporphyrinogen oxidase-inhibiting herbicides: insights from computational mutation scanning and site-directed mutagenesis

The potential of protoporphyrinogen oxidase (PPO) to develop resistance against five PPO-inhibiting herbicides has been studied using computational mutation scanning (CMS) protocol, leading to valuable insights into the resistance mechanisms and structure-resistance relationship of the PPO inhibitors. The calculated shifts in the binding free energies caused by the mutations correlated very well with those derived from the corresponding experimental data obtained from site-directed mutagenesis of PPO, leading to valuable insights into the resistance mechanisms of PPO inhibitors. The calculated entropy change was related to the conformational flexibility of the inhibitor, which demonstrated that inhibitors with appropriate conformational flexibility may inhibit both the wild type and mutants simultaneously. The reasonable correlation between the computational and experimental data further validate that CMS protocol is valuable for predicting resistance associated with amino acid mutations on target proteins.

α-(Substituted-phenoxyacetoxy)-α-heterocyclylmethylphosphonates: synthesis, herbicidal activity, inhibition on pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDHc), and application as postemergent herbicide against broadleaf weeds

Pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDHc) is the site of action of a new class of herbicides. On the basis of the previous work for O,O'-dimethyl α-(substituted-phenoxyacetoxy)alkylphosphonates (I), further synthetic modifications were made by introducing a fural and a thienyl group to structure I. A series of α-(substituted-phenoxyacetoxy)-α-heterocyclylmethylphosphonate derivatives (II) were synthesized as potential inhibitors of PDHc. The postemergent activity of the title compounds II was evaluated in greenhouse experiments. The in vitro efficacy of II against PDHc was also examined. Compounds II with fural as R(3) and 2,4-dichloro as X and Y showed significant herbicidal activity and effective inhibition against PDHc from plants. O,O'-Dimethyl α-(2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetoxy)-α-(furan-2-yl)methylphosphonate II-17 had higher inhibitory potency against PDHc from Pisum sativum than against PDHc from Oryza sativa in vitro and was most effective against broadleaf weeds at 50 and 300 ai g/ha. II-17 was safe for maize and rice even at the dose of 900-1200 ai g/ha. Field trials at different regions in China showed that II-17 (HWS) could control a broad spectrum of broad-leaved and sedge weeds at the rate of 225-375 ai g/ha for postemergent applications in maize fields. II-17 (HWS) displayed potential utility as a selective herbicide.

Synthesis and herbicidal activity of diphenyl ether derivatives containing unsaturated carboxylates

A series of novel diphenyl ether derivatives containing unsaturated carboxylates were designed and synthesized. Their structures were identified by (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance and elemental analyses. The bioassays indicated that the compounds 5b and 5c exhibited good herbicidal activities against velvetleaf at a concentration of 30-40 g/hm(2). The relationship between structure and herbicidal activity was also discussed. Among unsaturated carboxylates group, butenoate is the most promising one. Amonst them, 4-ethoxy-4-oxobutenyl 5-(2-chloro-4-(trifluoromethyl)phenoxy)-2-nitrobenzoate 5b was identified as the most promising candidate due to its high protoporphyrinogen IX oxidase inhibition effect (pI(50) = 6.64) and good herbicidal activity against broadleaf weeds with selectivity to soybean and low toxicity to mammals.

X-ray supramolecular structure, NMR spectroscopy and synthesis of 3-methyl-1-phenyl-1H-chromeno[4,3-c]pyrazol-4-ones formed by the unexpected cyclization of 3-[1-(phenyl-hydrazono)ethyl]-chromen-2-ones

The molecular structures of nine 3-methyl-1-phenyl-1H-chromeno[4,3-c]pyrazol-4-one isomers, obtained by the oxidative cyclization of the corresponding 1-phenylhydrazono chromen-2-ones with copper acetate as catalyst, are reported. The molecular and supramolecular structures of the 8-chloro, 8-bromo- and 8-nitro isomers 2b-d, were established by X-ray diffraction. The halogenated isomers 2b and 2c are isomorphs, they crystallize as a triclinic system, space group P-1 with two molecules in the asymmetric unit. Compound 2d crystallizes as a monoclinic system, space group P2₁/m with two molecules in the unit cell. The 1-phenyl ring [Cg(4)] is almost perpendicularly positioned to the chromene-pyrazole ring system. This conformation is in agreement with the anisotropic NMR shielding effect exerted by the phenyl ring over H-9 in solution. The supramolecular architecture is almost controlled by C-H···A (A = O, p) and face to face p-stacking interactions. The observed p-stacking trend between chromene and pyrazole rings is given by the overlapping between the best donor and acceptor rings in each compound.

4-(4-Chloro-5-methyl-3-trifluoro-meth-yl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-6-(prop-2-ynyl-oxy)pyrimidine

The molecule of the title compound, C(12)H(8)ClF(3)N(4)O, is twisted as indicated by the C-O-C-C torsion angle of 76.9 (3)°. Moreover, the trifluoro-methyl group shows rotational disorder of the F atoms, with site-occupancy factors of 0.653 (6) and 0.347 (6). The dihedral angle between the rings is 1.88 (12) Å.

Synthesis and herbicidal activity of novel N-(2,2,2)-trifluoroethylpyrazole derivatives

A series of novel N-(2,2,2)-trifluoroethylpyrazole derivatives were synthesized, and their structures were characterized by IR, mass spectroscopy, (1)H NMR, and elementary analysis. The herbicidal activities of target compounds 10a-c and 11a-c were assessed. The bioassay results showed that these pyrazole derivatives exhibited good herbicidal activity. Compound 11a showed the best pre-emergence herbicidal effects against both dicotyledonous and monocotyledonous weeds with good safety to maize and rape at the dosage of 150 g a.i. ha(-1) in greenhouse. Field trials indicated that compound 11a exhibited better herbicidal activity by soil application than the commercial herbicide, metolachlor. Moreover, compound 11a showed the same level of safety to maize as metolachlor.