Xingzhou Li

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 1,2,4-trisubstituted imidazoles and 1,3,5-trisubstituted pyrazoles as inhibitors of transforming growth factor β type 1 receptor (ALK5)

Two series of nitrogenous heterocycle compounds--1,2,4-trisubstituted imidazoles and 1,3,5-trisubstituted pyrazoles have been synthesized and evaluated for their ALK5 inhibitory activity and cytotoxicity in TGFbeta-Smad2 assay and MTT assay, respectively. The ALK4/5/7 inhibitory activity of some compound was also evaluated in ALK4/5/7 autophosphorylation assays. Compounds 6c and 14c showed relatively potent ALK5 inhibition while weak cytotoxicity. At the same time, compounds 6c and 14c display relatively better ALK5 selectivity versus ALK4/ALK7 (nearly 10-fold) compared with SB431542, a well known ALK5 inhibitor. Compound 6g2 proved to be a moderately selective ALK4 inhibitor versus ALK5 and ALK7 (>10-fold). The binding mode of 14c generated by flexible docking study shows that 14c fits well into the site cavity of ALK5 by forming several tight interactions.

Novel nonquaternary reactivators showing reactivation efficiency for soman-inhibited human acetylcholinesterase

Soman is a highly toxic nerve agent with strong inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE), but of the few reactivators showing antidotal efficiency for soman-inhibited AChE presently are all permanently charged cationic oximes with poor penetration of the blood-brain barrier. To overcome this problem, uncharged reactivators have been designed and synthesized, but few of them were efficient for treating soman poisoning. Herein, we used a dual site biding strategy to develop more efficient uncharged reactivators. The ortho-hydroxylbenzaldoximes were chosen as reactivation ligands of AChE to prevent the secondary poisoning of AChE, and simple aromatic groups were used as peripheral site ligands of AChE, which were linked to the oximes in a similar way as that found in the reactivator HI-6. The in vitro experiment demonstrated that some of the resulting conjugates have robust activity against soman-inhibited AChE, and oxime 8b was highlighted as the most efficient one. Although not good as HI-6 in vitro, these new compounds hold promise for development of more efficient centrally acting reactivators for soman poisoning due to their novel nonquaternary structures, which are predicted to be able to cross the blood-brain barrier.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 1,2,4-trisubstituted imidazoles as inhibitors of transforming growth factor-β type I receptor (ALK5)

A series of 2-(6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-1H-imidazoles were synthesized and evaluated for ALK5 inhibitory activity in cell-based luciferase reporter assays. The compound 4-(((1-(benzo[d][1,3]dioxol-5-yl)-2-(6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-1H-imidazol-4-yl)methyl)amino)benzenesulfonamide (27a) exhibited slightly higher inhibition (IC50=0.24μM) than SB431542 (IC50=0.35μM), a well known potent ALK5 inhibitor. The binding mode of 27a generated by flexible docking study shows that it fits well into the site cavity of ALK5 by forming several tight interactions.

Short Synthesis of 1-(3-tert-Butyl-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-5-yl)-3-(5-(2-morpholinoethoxy)-2H-chromen-8-yl) Urea Derivatives

Abstract A short and efficient synthesis of 1-(3-tert-butyl-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-5-yl)-3-(5-(2-morpholinoethoxy)-2H-chromen-8-yl) urea derivatives (1a–c), a novel type of p38 MAPK inhibitors, is described. The Claisen thermal rearrangement of arylpropargyl ethers was employd as a key step to synthesize the chromene core. The solvent effect on the ratio of the resultant two isomers of Claisen thermal rearrangement, namely 2-methylbenzofuran and 2H-chromen, was also investigated.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of Chromenylurea and Chromanylurea derivatives as anti-TNF-α agents that target the p38 MAPK pathway.

A series of 1-aryl-3-(2H-chromen-5-yl)urea and 1-aryl-3-(chroman-5-yl)urea derivatives were designed, synthesized and evaluated for their inhibitory activities towards TNF-α production in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated THP-1 cells. The most active compound, 40g, inhibited TNF-α release with an IC50 value of 0.033 μM, which is equipotent to that of BIRB796 (IC50 = 0.032 μM).