Carlos Pérez

Regiospecific Synthesis and Anti-Human Immunodeficiency Virus Activity of Novel 5-Substituted N-Alkylcarbamoyl and N,N-Dialkyl Carbamoyl 1,2,3-Triazole-TSAO Analogues

Several 5-N-alkyl and 5-N,N-dialkylcarbamoyl substituted analogues of the anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 lead compound[1-[2‘,5’-bis-O-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-β-D-ribofuranosyl]-5-(N,N-dimethylcarbamoyl)-1,2,3-triazole]-3‘-spiro-5“-(4”-amino-1“,2”-oxathiole-2“,2”-dioxide) have been prepared and evaluated as inhibitors of HIV-1 replication. A new regiospecific synthetic procedure is described. The compounds were prepared by cycloaddition of the appropriate glycosylazide to 2-oxo-alkylidentriphenyl-phosphoranes, followed by treatment with primary or secondary amines, to yield, exclusively, 5-substituted 1,2,3-triazole-TSAO analogues. Several 5-substituted 1,2,3-triazole-TSAO derivatives proved to be potent inhibitors of HIV-1 replication with higher antiviral selectivity than that of the parent TSAO prototype.

Hiv-1 Specific Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors: why are Tsao-Nucleosides so Unique?

1. INTRODUCTION AIDS will still be one of the most important challenges for the Scientific Community in the approaching new century. Since the identification, in 1983-84,1,2 of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as the etiological agent of AIDS, significant progress has been made in the treatment of HIV-infected patients. This has been in part due to the discovery and clinical use of an increasing number of anti-HIV drugs. However, while highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART)3 approaches have reduced the morbidity and mortality, the intertwined problems of drug induced viral resistance, poor compliance with complex regimens and therapy failure continue. Therefore, there remains a pressing need for the development of new antiviral agents that can be used not only as first line therapeutic candidates, but also in the antiretroviral-experienced patient population.

Automated docking and molecular dynamics simulations of nimesulide in the cyclooxygenase active site of human prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase-2 (COX-2)

Molecular models of the complex between the selective COX-2 inhibitor nimesulide and the cyclooxygenase active site of human prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase-2 have been built using a combination of homology modelling, conformational searching and automated docking techniques. The stability of the resulting complexes has been assessed by molecular dynamics simulations and interaction energy decomposition. It is found that nimesulide exploits the extra space made available by the replacement at position 523 of an isoleucine residue in COX-1 by a valine in COX-2 and establishes electrostatic interactions with both Arg-106 and Arg-499 (Arg-120 and Arg-513 in PGHS-1 numbering). Two alternate binding modes are proposed which are compatible with the pharmacological profile of this agent as a COX-2 selective inhibitor.

Comparative Binding Energy (COMBINE) Analysis of Human Neutrophil Elastase Inhibition by Pyridone-containing Trifluoromethylketones

The complexes of human neutrophil elastase with a series of 40 N3-substituted trifluoromethylketone-based pyridone inhibitors have been modelled. The series spans three orders of magnitude in inhibition constants despite the fact that it was originally developed in an attempt to improve the oral activity of a lead compound. Ligand-receptor interaction energies calculated using molecular mechanics did not correlate well with the experimental activities. A good correlation with activity was found, however, when a COMBINE analysis of the same data was carried out, which allowed a quantitative interpretation of the modelled complexes. The essence of this method is to partition the ligand-receptor interaction energies into individual residue-based van der Waals and electrostatic contributions, and to subject the resulting energy matrix to partial least squares analysis. Incorporation of two additional descriptors representing the electrostatic energy contributions to the partial desolvation of both the receptor and the ligands improved the QSAR model, as did the replacement of the distance-dependent electrostatic contributions with solvent-screened electrostatic interactions calculated by numerically solving the Poisson-Boltzmann equation. The model was validated both internally (cross-validation) and externally, using a set of twelve 6-phenyl-pyridopyrimidine analogs. The analysis reveals the subtle interplay of binding forces which occurs within the enzyme active site and provides objective information that can be interpreted in the light of the receptor structure. This information, gained from a series of real compounds, can be easily translated into 3D real or virtual database queries in the search for more active derivatives.