Xi Zong

Discovery and preliminary evaluation of 2-aminobenzamide and hydroxamate derivatives containing 1,2,4-oxadiazole moiety as potent histone deacetylase inhibitors

Using Entinostat as a lead compound, 2-aminobenzamide and hydroxamate derivatives have been designed and synthesized. The entire target compounds were investigated for their in vitro antiproliferative activities using the MTT-based assay against five human cancer cell lines including U937, A549, NCI-H661, MDA-MB-231 and HCT116. 2-Aminobenzamide series of compounds (10a-10j) demonstrated the most significant inhibition against human acute monocytic myeloid leukemia cell line U937, but no or poor activities against two human lung cancer cell lines. Furthermore, the target compounds were screened for their inhibitory activities against HDAC 1, 2, and 8. 2-Aminobenzamide derivatives (10) manifested a higher selectivity for HDAC 1 over HDAC 2, but were not active against HDAC 8. In contrast, most hydroxamate derivatives (11) inhibit HDAC 8 with lower IC50 values than SAHA and Entinostat. Docking study with selected compounds 10f and 11a revealed that the compounds might bind tightly to the binding pockets in HDAC 2 and HDAC 8, respectively. The results suggest that they may be promising lead compounds for the development of novel anti-tumor drug potentially via inhibiting HDACs.

Discovery, bioactivity and docking simulation of Vorinostat analogues containing 1,2,4-oxadiazole moiety as potent histone deacetylase inhibitors and antitumor agents

In our study, three series of hydroxamate, 2-aminobenzamide, and trifluoromethyl ketone analogues have been designed and synthesized. The synthesized compounds were investigated for their in vitro antiproliferative activities using the MTT-based assay against three human cancer cell lines including A549, NCI-H661, and U937. Most analogues exhibited higher antiproliferative activities against human acute myeloid leukemia cell U937 than the other two human lung cancer cell lines. Furthermore, the compounds were examined against HDAC1, 2, and 8 isoforms. Docking study of compounds 6h, 9b, and 10a suggested that they might bind tightly to the binding pocket of HDAC2 and/or HDAC8. The results suggest that these compounds might have potential as lead compounds for the development of anti-tumor drugs with HDACs inhibitory activities.

A New Near-Infrared Neutral pH Fluorescent Probe for Monitoring Minor pH Changes and its Application in Imaging of HepG2 Cells

A new near-neutral pH near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe utilizing a fluorophore–receptor molecular framework that can modulate the fluorescence emission intensity through a fast photoinduced electron transfer process was developed. Our strategy was to choose tricarbocyanine (Cy), a NIR fluorescent dye with high extinction coefficients, as a fluorophore, and N-methylpiperazine (MP) as a receptor. The pH titration indicated that MP-Cy can monitor the minor physiological pH fluctuations with a pKa of ∼7.10 near physiological pH, which is valuable for intracellular pH researches. The probe responds linearly and rapidly to minor pH fluctuations within the range of 3.05–7.10 and exhibits strong dependence on pH changes. As expected, the real-time imaging of cellular pH and the detection of pH in situ was achieved successfully in living HepG2 cells by this probe. It is shown that the probe effectively avoids the influence of autofluorescence and native cellular species in biological systems and meanwhile exhibits high sensitivity, good photostability, and excellent cell membrane permeability.

Discovery of phenoxybutanoic acid derivatives as potent endothelin antagonists with antihypertensive activity

A series of phenoxybutanoic acid derivatives were synthesized and tested for their antagonistic activity on the contraction of the rat thoracic aortic ring induced by endothelin-1. Preliminary screening results showed that 6e and 6g with benzoheterocycles demonstrated significant antagonistic activities when compared to the reference compound BQ123. The results from additional assays for the binding affinity and selectivity for endothelin receptors showed that 6e was a selective ETA antagonist with a nanomolar IC50. Moreover, 6e was effective in relieving hypoxia-induced pulmonary arterial hypertension and right ventricular weight ratio. Therefore, 6e may have potential for further development as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

The Synthesis of a Novel Near-Infrared Fluorescent Probe and its Application in Imaging of Living Cells

IR-780, a novel near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe, was synthesized and applied to living cells. The probe exhibited good fluorescent characteristic, and cell experiments showed the probe had high affinity and without apparent cytotoxicity. Fluorescent image experiments in living A549 (Human lung adenocarcinoma epithelial cell line) and L929 (mouse fibroblast cell line) cells, further demonstrated its potential applications in biological systems. The probe effectively prevented the influence of autofluorescence and native cellular species in biological systems. It also exhibited excellent cell membrane permeability, good photostability, and high sensitivity.

Discovery of 4-aminoquinazoline--urea derivatives as Aurora kinase inhibitors with antiproliferative activity.

Two series of 20 novel 4-aminoquinazoline-urea derivatives have been designed and synthesized. The entire target compounds were investigated for their in vitro antiproliferative activity against six human cancer cell lines (K562, U937, A549, NCI-H661, HT29 and LoVo) using the MTT-based assay. Most compounds showed significant antiproliferative activities against four solid tumor cell lines, but no or poor activities against two leukemia cell lines. Furthermore, the target compounds were screened for Aurora A/B kinases inhibitory activity. Among them, 7c, 7d, 8c, and 8d are more potent against Aurora A kinase than ZM447439. Docking study of compounds 7d and ZM447439 revealed that they bound strongly to the ATP-binding sites of Aurora A and B. Thus, they may be promising lead compounds for the development of novel anti-tumor drug potentially via inhibiting Aurora kinases.

Synthesis of a near-infrared fluorescent probe and its application in imaging of MCF-7 cells.

IR-789, a novel near-infrared fluorescent probe, was designed, synthesized, and applied to living cells. The probe exhibited better response fluorescence characteristics than the only FDA-approved agent, indocyanine green. Cell experiments showed that the probe had high affinity and without apparent cytotoxicity. Fluorescent image experiments in living MCF-7 cells (human breast adenocarcinoma cell line) further demonstrated the potential applications of the probe in biological systems. The probe effectively prevented the influence of autofluorescence and native cellular species in biological systems. It also exhibited high sensitivity, good photostability, and excellent cell membrane permeability.

Discovery of 3,3a,4,5-tetrahydro-2H-benzo[g]indazole containing quinoxaline derivatives as novel EGFR/HER-2 dual inhibitors

In the present study, twenty-five pyrazole–quinoxaline derivatives (4a–4y) were designed and synthesized, and their biological activity as potential EGFR or HER-2 kinase inhibitors was evaluated. Among them, compound 4l displayed better antiproliferative activity against A549 and MCF-7 cell lines than Eroltinib. Further kinase inhibitory activity assay results indicated that compound 4l demonstrated the most potent enzyme inhibitory activity. Docking simulations were then performed to position compounds 4l and 4x into the active binding site of EGFR to determine the probable binding model. 3D-QSAR models were built to aid in the effective design of the presently studied and future EGFR inhibitors. These discoveries suggested that the title compounds are potential EGFR/HER-2 dual inhibitors and compound 4l may be a promising lead compound for the development of novel antitumor agents, potentially via inhibiting EGFR/HER-2.

Design and synthesis of imidazole N–H substituted amide prodrugs as inhibitors of hepatitis C virus replication

Twenty-five novel imidazole N-H substituted Daclatasvir (BMS-790052, DCV) analogues (8a-8y) were designed and synthesized as potential prodrugs. Structure modifications were performed in order to improve potency and pharmacokinetic (PK) properties. All target compounds were evaluated in a hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1b replicon, and the 2-oxoethyl acetate substituted compound 8t showed similar anti-HCV activity (EC50 = 0.08 nM) to that of the lead compound Daclatasvir. Moreover, the utility of prodrug 8t was demonstrated through similar exposure of the parent compound when the prodrugs were dosed in vivo. PK studies showed that prodrug 8t was an ideal candidate for a slower and sustained release form of Daclatasvir.

Synthesis and characterization of a novel near-infrared fluorescent probe for applications in imaging A549 cells

AbstractObjectiveTo design and synthesize a novel near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe based on indocyanine Green (ICG), that can be applied in imaging living cells. ResultsA highly fluorescent novel NIR fluorescent probe (IR-793) was synthesized in two steps. IR-793 had better fluorescence and optical stability than ICG. In addition, no obvious cytotoxicity effect of IR-793 was observed and cell viability was above 75% at the maximum concentration (120 nM). IR-793 also exhibited good performance in imaging living A549 cells.ConclusionIR-793, a novel NIR fluorescent probe that is stable, low-cost, highly fluorescent and low cytotoxicity, has been designed and synthesized for imaging living cells.