Scott C. Berk

Combinatorial synthesis of CCR5 antagonists.

Herein we report the preparation of a combinatorial library of compounds with potent CCR5 binding affinity. The library design was aided by SAR generated in a traditional medicinal chemistry effort. Compounds with novel combinations of subunits were discovered that have high binding affinity for the CCR5 receptor. A potent CCR5 antagonist from the library, compound 11 was found to have moderate anti-HIV-1 activity.

1,3,4-Trisubstituted pyrrolidine CCR5 receptor antagonists: modifications of the arylpropylpiperidine side chains.

The 4-(3-phenylprop-1-yl)piperidine moiety of the 1,3,4-trisubstituted pyrrolidine CCR5 antagonist 1 was modified with electron deficient aromatics as well as replacement of the benzylic methylene with sulfones, gem-difluoromethylenes and alcohols in an effort to balance the antiviral potency with reasonable pharmacokinetics.

Parallel medicinal chemistry approaches to selective HDAC1/HDAC2 inhibitor (SHI-1:2) optimization

The successful application of both solid and solution phase library synthesis, combined with tight integration into the medicinal chemistry effort, resulted in the efficient optimization of a novel structural series of selective HDAC1/HDAC2 inhibitors by the MRL-Boston Parallel Medicinal Chemistry group. An initial lead from a small parallel library was found to be potent and selective in biochemical assays. Advanced compounds were the culmination of iterative library design and possess excellent biochemical and cellular potency, as well as acceptable PK and efficacy in animal models.

Spatially arrayed mixture (SpaM) technology : Synthesis of two-dimensionally indexed orthogonal combinatorial libraries

Abstract A combinatorial strategy is reported that seeks to maximize information content while maintaining synthesis and screening efficiencies, and that furnishes active compounds with minimal need for synthesis or screening follow-up. The strategy was used to identify a known active from a library of 9,216 compounds.

Somatostatin receptor subtypes 2 and 5 mediate inhibition of egg yolk-induced gall bladder emptying in mice.

Background  Somatostatin inhibits gall bladder contraction. Impaired gall bladder emptying is associated with gall bladder stone formation. The incidence of cholecystolithiasis is high in patients treated with a somatostatin agonist octreotide, which predominantly interacts with somatostatin receptor subtype 2 (SSTR2). Therefore, it is believed that SSTR2 regulates gall bladder contraction; however, evidence has not been provided. Here, we evaluate the effects of SSTR1‐SSTR5‐selective agonists on egg yolk‐induced gall bladder contraction in mice.