Doreen Crossdoersen

Sub-Nanomolar hMC1R Agonists by End-Capping of the Melanocortin Tetrapeptide His-d-Phe-Arg-Trp-NH2

Twenty three derivatives of the core fragment His(6)-D-Phe(7)-Arg(8)-Trp(9)-NH(2) end-capped with carboxylic and sulfonic acids were synthesized and evaluated at human melanocortin receptors (hMC1, hMC3, and hMC4Rs). The SAR within this series allowed us to map the hMCRs near the His(6) binding site and design a superpotent MC1R agonist, LK-184, Ph(CH(2))(3)CO-His-D-Phe-Arg-Trp-NH(2) (19) with EC(50) 0.01 nM (5 nM at MC3 and MC4Rs).

Discovery of orally bioavailable 1,3,4-trisubstituted 2-oxopiperazine-based melanocortin-4 receptor agonists as potential antiobesity agents.

A study that was designed to identify plausible replacements for highly basic guanidine moiety contained in potent MC4R agonists, as exemplified by 1, led to the discovery of initial nonguanidine lead 5. Propyl analog 23 was subsequently found to be equipotent to 5, whereas analogs bearing smaller and branched alkyl groups at the 3 position of the oxopiperazine template demonstrated reduced binding affinity and agonist potency for MC4R. Acylation of the NH2 group of the 4F-D-Phe residue of 3-propyl analog 23 significantly increased the binding affinity and the functional activity for MC4R. Analogs with neutral and weakly basic capping groups of the D-Phe residue exhibited excellent MC4R selectivity against MC1R whereas those with an amino acid had moderate MC4R/MC1R selectivity. We have also demonstrated that compound 35 showed promising oral bioavailability and a moderate oral half life and induced significant weight loss in a 28-day rat obesity model.

A NOVEL CELL-BASED SYSTEM FOR EVALUATING SKELETAL MUSCLE CELL HYPERTROPHY–INDUCING AGENTS

SummarySkeletal muscle is a tissue that adapts to increased use by increasing contractile protein gene expression and ultimately skeletal muscle mass (hypertrophy). To identify hypertrophy-inducing agents that may be potentially useful in the treatment of age-related muscle loss (sarcopenia) and to better understand hypertrophy signal transduction pathways, we have created a skeletal muscle cell-based hypertrophy-responsive system. This system was created by permanently modifying the relatively undifferentiated C2C12 cell line so that it contains the β-myosin heavy chain (β-MHC) gene promoter and enhancer regions fused to a luciferase reporter gene. This cell line responds, by increasing luciferase expression, to a variety of skeletal muscle hypertrophy-inducing agents, including insulin, insulin-like growth factor I, testosterone, and the β-adrenergic receptor agonist isoproterenol, in both the undifferentiated and differentiated states. This cell-based system should be useful for identifying novel hypertrophy-inducing agents as well as understanding hypertrophy signal transduction.