Therapeutic Potential of Polyamidoamine Dendrimer for Amyloidogenic Transthyretin Amyloidosis

Amyloidogenic transthyretin (ATTR) amyloidosis is caused by a formation of ATTR amyloid fibrils. Because ATTR misfolding triggers the formation of aggregates and amyloid fibrils, which are considered to deposit on the tissues, novel clinically effective therapeutic strategies targeted to those processes are urgently needed. In this study, to discover a new drug candidate for ATTR amyloidosis therapy, we focused on polyamidoamine dendrimer (dendrimer), a 3D-structural nanomaterial, which has a branched cationic polymer repeating polyamidoamine units. Dendrimer (G2) not only inhibited ATTR V30M amyloid fibril formation, but also reduced already formed ATTR V30M amyloid fibrils by reducing β-sheet structure of ATTR V30M protein. Moreover, intravenous administration of dendrimer (G2) reduced TTR deposition in human ATTR V30M transgenic rats. These results indicate that dendrimer (G2) may possess both inhibitory and breaking effects on ATTR V30M amyloid, suggesting that dendrimer has the potential as a dual effective agents against TTR amyloidosis.

Synthesis and characterization of novel 1,2-oxazine-based small molecules that targets acetylcholinesterase

Thirteen 2-oxazine-based small molecules were synthesized targeting 5-lipoxygenase (LOX), and acetylcholinesterase (AChE). The test revealed that the newly synthesized compounds had potent inhibition towards both 5-LOX and AChE in lower micro molar concentration. Among the tested compounds, the most active compound, 2-[(2-acetyl-6,6-dimethyl-4-phenyl-5,6-dihydro-2H-1,2-oxazin-3-yl)methyl]-1H-isoindole-1,3(2H)-dione (2a) showed inhibitory activity towards 5-LOX and AChE with an IC50 values of 1.88, and 2.5 μM, respectively. Further, the in silico molecular docking studies revealed that the compound 2a bound to the catalytic domain of AChE strongly with a highest CDOCKER score of -1.18 kcal/mol when compared to other compounds of the same series. Additionally, 2a showed a good lipophilicity (logP=2.66), suggesting a potential ability to penetrate the blood-brain-barrier. These initial pharmacological data revealed that the compound 2a could serve as a drug-seed in developing anti-Alzheimer's agents.