Kiyoharu Shirakawa

The configuration and conformation of the arabinose moiety in platycodins, saponins isolated from platycodon grandiflorum, and mi-saponins from madhuca longifolia based on carbon-13 and hydrogen-1 nmr spectroscopic evidence: The total structures of the saponins

Abstract 13 C and 1 H FT NMR spectroscopy provided confirmatory evidence for the anomeric α configuration and the predominance of the 1 C 4 conformation of the L-arabinopyranose moiety in all saponins hitherto isolated from the title plants.

The Neuroprotective Effect of the Novel Noncompetitive NMDA Antagonist, FR115427 in Focal Cerebral Ischemia in Rats

The present study was carried out to compare the neuroprotective effect of the novel noncompetitive NMDA antagonist, FR115427, with that of (+)MK-801 in rat focal cerebral ischemia. Focal cerebral ischemia was produced by permanent occlusion of the left middle cerebral artery (MCA). Drugs were administered intraperitoneally immediately after ischemia and once a day for 6 successive days. FR115427 (10 mg/kg, i.p.) significantly improved neurologic deficit at 1 day after ischemia and reduced total infarct volume (54%) at 7 days after ischemia. Although FR115427 (10 mg/kg, s.c.) produced neuronal vacuolization similar to (+)MK-801, FR115427 did not produce adverse effects such as a loss of body weight, mortality, and hypothermia, in contrast to (+)MK-801. These results suggest that FR115427 may be useful in the treatment of stroke.

Neurochemical and electrophysiological studies on FR115427, a novel non-competitive NMDA receptor antagonist

The pharmacological profile of FR115427 has been examined using ligand binding and electrophysiological techniques. Binding of [3H]dizocilpine in the presence of L-glutamate was inhibited by the (+) isomers of dizocilpine and FR115427. The corresponding (-) isomers were less active, and stereoselectivity was particularly marked in the case of FR115427. In contrast to dizocilpine, the affinity of FR115427 for [3H]dizocilpine binding sites was little affected by addition of either L-glutamate and/or glycine. In a cortical wedge preparation, FR115427 inhibited N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-induced responses in a non-competitive, use-dependent manner. Intracellularly recorded excitatory synaptic responses in hippocampal neurones were only partially inhibited by FR115427 thereby confirming a selective effect on the NMDA-mediated component of neuronal excitation induced by the endogenous neurotransmitter. The data suggest that FR115427 is a non-competitive, use-dependent NMDA receptor antagonist with more pronounced stereoselectivity and less marked use dependence than dizocilpine.