(+)-Dinapsoline: an efficient synthesis and pharmacological profile of a novel dopamine agonist

Organocatalytic Asymmetric Multicomponent Cascade Reaction for the Synthesis of Contiguously Substituted Tetrahydronaphthols

Isobenzopyrylium ions are unique, highly reactive, aromatic intermediates which are largely unexplored in asymmetric catalysis despite their high potential synthetic utility. In this study, an organocatalytic asymmetric multicomponent cascade via dienamine catalysis, involving a cycloaddition, a nucleophilic addition, and a ring-opening reaction, is disclosed. The reaction furnishes chiral tetrahydronaphthols containing four contiguous stereocenters in good to high yield, high diastereoselectivity (up to >20:1), and excellent enantioselectivity (93-98% ee). The obtained products are important synthetic intermediates, and it is demonstrated that they can be used for the generation of frameworks such as octahydrobenzo[h]isoquinoline and [2.2.2]octane scaffolds. Furthermore, mechanistic experiments involving oxygen-18-labeling studies and density functional theory calculations provide a vivid picture of the reaction mechanism. Finally, the bioactivity of 16 representative tetrahydronaphthol compounds has been evaluated in U-2OS cancer cells with some compounds showing a unique profile and a clear morphological change.

A concise synthesis of cyclobrassinin and its analogues via a thiyl radical aromatic substitution

Cyclobrassinin and its six and seven-membered ring analogues have been synthesized through a thiyl radical-mediated intramolecular aromatic substitution of brassinin derivatives.

Rapid two-step synthesis of benzimidazo[1',2':1,5]pyrrolo[2,3-c]isoquinolines by a three-component coupling reaction

A two-step, three-component coupling reaction on ionic liquid supported 2-cyanomethylbenzimidazoles, methyl 2-formylbenzoate, and isocyanides under microwave activation is explored. Knoevenagel condensation of 2-cyanomethylbenzimidazole with methyl-2-formylbenzoate in the presence of piperidine catalyst is followed by [4+1] cycloaddition with an isocyanide in the next step. Consequent intramolecular δ-lactam formation allows rapid construction of novel aza-pentacycles, benzimidazo[1',2':1,5]pyrrolo[2,3-c]isoquinolines.

Structure-affinity relationships of halogenated predicentrine and glaucine derivatives at D1 and D2 dopaminergic receptors: halogenation and D1 receptor selectivity

Halogenation of the aporphine alkaloid boldine at the 3-position leads to increased affinity for rat brain D(1)-like dopaminergic receptors with some selectivity over D(2)-like receptors. A series of 3-halogenated and 3,8-dihalogenated (halogen=Cl, Br or I) derivatives of predicentrine (9-O-methylboldine) and glaucine (2,9-di-O-methylboldine) were prepared and assayed for binding at D(1) and D(2) sites. Halogenation of predicentrine led to strong increases in affinity for D(1)-like receptors, while the affinities for D(2)-like receptors were either practically unchanged or reduced three- to fourfold. Halogenated glaucine derivatives did not show any clear trend towards enhanced selectivity, and the affinities were poor and similar to or worse than the values previously recorded for glaucine itself. Together with earlier work on boldine derivatives, these results suggest that the 2-hydroxy group on the aporphine skeleton may determine a binding mode favoring D(1)-like over D(2)-like receptors, with enhanced affinity when the C-3 position is halogenated.

Functional selectivity of D2 receptor ligands in a Chinese hamster ovary hD2L cell line: evidence for induction of ligand-specific receptor states

There are now several examples of single G protein-coupled receptors to which binding of specific agonists causes differential effects on the associated signaling pathways. The dopamine D(2) receptor is of special importance because the selective activation of functional pathways has been shown both in vitro and in situ. For this reason, the present work characterized a series of rigid D(2) agonists in Chinese hamster ovary cells transfected with the human D(2L) receptor using three distinct functional endpoints: inhibition of cAMP synthesis, stimulation of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase phosphorylation, and activation of G protein-coupled inwardly rectifying potassium channels (GIRKs). In this system, S-propylnorapomorphine (SNPA), R-propylnorapomorphine (RNPA), dihydrexidine (DHX), dinapsoline (DNS), and dinoxyline (DNX) all inhibited forskolin-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity to the same extent as the prototypical D(2) agonist quinpirole (QP). The rank order of potency was the following: RNPA >> QP = DNX > SNPA > DHX = DNS. For MAP kinase phosphorylation, DHX, DNS, DNX, and RNPA had efficacy similar to QP, whereas SNPA was a partial agonist. The rank order of potency for MAP kinase phosphorylation was RNPA >> QP = DNX > DHX > DNS = SNPA. DNX activated GIRK channels to the same extent as QP, whereas DHX and DNS were partial agonists, and RNPA and SNPA caused no appreciable activation. These findings indicate that DHX, DNS, RNPA, and SNPA have atypical functional properties at the hD(2L) receptor and display different patterns of functional selectivity. We hypothesize that this functional selectivity may be a result of ligand induction of specific conformations of the D(2L) receptor that activate only selected signaling pathways.

Synthesis and pharmacological evaluation of substituted naphth[1,2,3-de]isoquinolines (dinapsoline analogues) as D1 and D2 dopamine receptor ligands

Dinapsoline ((2); (+/-)-dihydroxy-2,3,7,11b-tetrahydro-1H-naphth[1,2,3-de]isoquinoline) is a full D(1) dopamine agonist that also has significant D(2) receptor affinity. Based on a similar pharmacophore, dinapsoline has pharmacological similarities to dihydrexidine ((1); (+/-)-trans-10,11-dihydroxy-5,6,6a,7,8,12b-hexahydrobenzo[a]phenanthridine), the first high affinity full D(1) agonist. Small alkyl substitutions on the dihydrexidine backbone are known to alter markedly the D(1):D(2) selectivity of dihydrexidine, and it was of interest to determine whether similar SAR exists within the dinapsoline series. This report describes the synthesis and pharmacological evaluation of six analogues of dinapsoline: N-allyl-(3);N-n-propyl- (4); 6-methyl- (5); 4-methyl- (6); 4-methyl-N-allyl- (7); and 4-methyl-N-n-propyl-dinapsoline (8). As expected from earlier studies with the dihydrexidine backbone, N-allyl (3) or N-n-propyl (4) analogues had markedly decreased D(1) affinity. Unexpectedly, and unlike the dihydrexidine series, these same substituents did not markedly increase D(2) affinity. The addition of a methyl group to position 6 (5) increased D(1):D(2) selectivity, but less markedly than did the analogous 2-methyl substituent added to 1. Unlike the analogous 4-methyl substituent of 1, the addition of a 4-methyl-group (6) actually decreased D(1) affinity without affecting D(2) affinity. These data demonstrate that the dinapsoline (2) backbone can be modified to produce dopamine agonists with novel properties. Moreover, as rigid ligands in which small substituents can cause significant changes in selectivity, they are important tools for deriving 'differential' SARs of the dopamine receptor isoforms.