Peter Sieger

Functional and biochemical rationales for the 24-hour long duration of action of olodaterol

β2-Adrenoceptor (β2-AR) agonists are powerful bronchodilators and play a pivotal role in the management of pulmonary obstructive diseases, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Although these agents first were used many years ago, progress in drug development has resulted in better tolerated, long-acting β2-AR agonists (LABAs), such as formoterol and salmeterol. Although LABAs have been on the market for several years, relatively little is known on the rationale(s) behind their long duration of action. In this study, we focused on olodaterol (previously known as BI1744CL), a novel inhaled LABA, which provides a bronchodilating effect lasting 24 h and is currently in Phase III clinical trials. To understand the rationale behind its long duration of action, different aspects of olodaterol were analyzed (i.e., its lipophilicity and propensity to accumulate in the lipid bilayer as well as its tight binding to the β2-AR). In line with its physicochemical properties, olodaterol associated moderately with lipid bilayers. Instead, kinetic as well as equilibrium binding studies indicated the presence of a stable [3H]olodaterol/β2-AR complex with a dissociation half-life of 17.8 h due to ternary complex formation. The tight binding of olodaterol to the human β2-AR and stabilization of the ternary complex were confirmed in functional experiments monitoring adenylyl cyclase activity after extensive washout. Taken together, binding, kinetic, and functional data support the existence of a stable complex with the β2-AR that, with a dissociation half-life >17 h, might indeed be a rationale for the 24-h duration of action of olodaterol.

Discovery of olodaterol, a novel inhaled beta2-adrenoceptor agonist with a 24 h bronchodilatory efficacy.

Compound 4p was identified from a series of 6-hydroxy-4H-benzo[1,4]oxazin-3-ones as potent agonist of the human beta2-adrenoceptor with a high beta1/beta2-selectivity. A complete reversal of acetylcholine-induced bronchoconstriction which lasted over the whole study period of 5h was demonstrated for 4p in a guinea pig in vivo model without any signs of cardiovascular effects up to 10-fold above the first dose reaching 100% bronchoprotection. The enantiomerically pure (R)-form of 4p exerted a bronchodilatory efficacy over 24 h in dogs and guinea pigs in the absence of systemic pharmacodynamic effects. Formoterol which was tested as comparator in the same in vivo models of acetylcholine-induced bronchoconstriction did not retain efficacy after 24 h. In summary, the preclinical profile of compound (R)-4p (olodaterol, also known as BI 1744 CL) suggests a potential for once-daily dosing in man accompanied with an improved safety profile.

The constitutive activity of the human muscarinic M3 receptor unmasks differences in the pharmacology of anticholinergics.

An activator protein 1-driven luciferase reporter assay was developed to monitor the activation of the human muscarinic M3 receptor (hM3-R) and evaluate functional potencies of different anticholinergics in Chinese hamster ovary cells. This assay proved to be superior to previously used functional assays [i.e., inositol phosphate accumulation (J Pharmacol Exp Ther 330:660–668, 2009)], thanks to the longer incubation times that allow reaching of pseudoequilibrium for ligands with slower dissociation kinetics, the long-acting muscarinic antagonists. Interestingly, within this system the hM3-R efficiently signaled in an agonist-independent manner. All the antagonists tested were able to inhibit the hM3-R constitutive activity in a concentration-dependent fashion, behaving as full inverse agonists. Curiously, significant differences in potency as antagonists (against carbachol) and inverse agonists were seen for some compounds (N-methyl scopolamine and tiotropium). Given the potential for inverse agonists to cause receptor up-regulation, the effect of chronic exposure to anticholinergics on the expression levels of hM3-R was also tested. Again, significant differences were seen, with some ligands (e.g., tiotropium) producing less than half of the receptor up-regulation caused by other anticholinergics. This study shows that anticholinergics can exhibit differential behaviors, which depend on the pathway investigated, and therefore provides evidence that the molecular mechanism of inverse agonism is likely to be more complex than the stabilization of a single inactive receptor conformation. In addition, differences in the potential of anticholinergics to induce hM3-R up-regulation might have clinical relevance, because many are on the market or in clinical trials as chronic treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, for example.

Tiotropium Fumarate: An Interesting Pharmaceutical Co-Crystal

A new salt-co-crystal of tiotropium fumarate with fumaric acid has been discovered, and found to be the most stable solid form of tiotropium fumarate. This type of structure consists of matched cations and anions (a salt) together with a nonionized free acid moiety as the co-former (co-crystal), and is unique amongst the large number of tiotropium salts that have been prepared and characterized. The stoichiometry cation/anion/co-former of 2:1:1 corresponds to a simple polymorph of the 1:1 salt, and its identity as a co-crystal has been established by single-crystal X-ray diffraction with some corroborating evidence from the Raman and infrared spectra. A detailed investigation of the bonding and geometry of the three crystalline forms of the fumarate indicates that the hydrogen bonding motifs are very similar, and that conformational differences arising from the packing of the two thiophene rings into the crystal structure is probably important in determining their relative stabilities. A comparison with the structures of other tiotropium salts indicates that there is a correlation of the dihedral angle between the two tiotropium thiophene rings with the stability of the crystal forms.

Interlaboratory Validation of Small-Scale Solubility and Dissolution Measurements of Poorly Water-Soluble Drugs

The purpose of this study was to investigate the interlaboratory variability in determination of apparent solubility (Sapp) and intrinsic dissolution rate (IDR) using a miniaturized dissolution instrument. Three poorly water-soluble compounds were selected as reference compounds and measured at multiple laboratories using the same experimental protocol. Dissolution was studied in fasted-state simulated intestinal fluid and phosphate buffer (pH 6.5). An additional 6 compounds were used for the development of an IDR measurement guide, which was then validated with 5 compounds. The results clearly showed a need for a standardized protocol including both the experimental assay and the data analysis. Standardization at both these levels decreased the interlaboratory variability. The results also illustrated the difficulties in performing disc IDR on poorly water-soluble drugs because the concentrations reached are typically below the limit of detection. The following guidelines were established: for compounds with Sapp >1 mg/mL, the disc method is recommended. For compounds with Sapp <100 μg/mL, IDR is recommended to be performed using powder dissolution. Compounds in the interval 100 μg/mL to 1 mg/mL can be analyzed with either of these methods.

Two-dimensional pH mapping of release kinetics of silica-encapsulated drugs.

The encapsulation of pharmaceutical drug molecules in silica gels during the sol-gel synthesis and their kinetic release profile in aqueous solutions were systematically investigated in dependence of synthesis pH(S) and extraction pH(E) values. Six pH values in the range from 1 to 6 were chosen in a 6 × 6 two-dimensional matrix to screen the first-order initial dissolution rate constant and the total amount of released drug. Characteristic differences are discovered in such two-dimensional pH mapping profiles for the molecules with different ionization behavior and they are explained by surface imprinting and encapsulation processes. Remarkably, these encapsulations must occur either in the particles of the sol solutions or during the rapid liquid-solid transition of the spray-drying process employed in this study. This pH mapping method is suggested as a novel tool to probe noncovalent imprinting and encapsulation processes in sol-gel-derived materials with embedded guest molecules.

Discovery of tetrahydroindazoles as a novel class of potent and in vivo efficacious gamma secretase modulators

The identification and optimization of a novel series of centrally efficacious gamma secretase modulators (GSMs) offering an alternative to the privileged aryl imidazole motif is described. Chiral bicyclic tetrahydroindazolyl amine substituted triazolopyridines were identified as structurally distinct novel series of GSMs. Representative compound BI-1408 ((R)-42) was demonstrated to be centrally efficacious in rats at a 30 mg/kg oral dose.