Rational design, synthesis and biological evaluation of modular fluorogenic substrates with high affinity and selectivity for PTP1B

Protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) is a key regulatory enzyme in several signal transduction pathways, and its upregulation has been associated with type-2 diabetes, obesity and cancer. Selective determination of the functional significance of PTP1B remains a major challenge because the activity of this crucial enzyme is currently evaluated through the use of fluorescent probes that lack selectivity and are limited to biochemical assays. Here we describe the rational design, synthesis and biological evaluation of new modular PTP1B fluorogenic substrates. The self-immolative 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol has been used as a key component for the design of phosphotyrosine mimics linked to a latent chromophore, which is released through an enzyme-initiated domino reaction. Preliminary biological investigations showed that, by optimising the stereoelectronic properties and the binding interactions at the enzyme active site, it is possible to achieve substrates with high affinity and promising selectivity. Due to their modular nature, the synthesised fluorogenic probes represent versatile tools; customisation of the different subunits could widen the scope of these probes to a broader range of in vitro assays. Finally, these studies elucidate the critical role played by Asp181 in the PTP1B-catalysed dephosphorylation mechanism: disruption of the native conformation of this key amino acid residue on the WDP loop yields fluorogenic inhibitors, rather than substrates. For this reason, our studies also represent a step forward for the development of improved PTP1B noncovalent inhibitors. Smart probes: The aminocoumarin latent chromophore is released through an enzyme-initiated 1,6-elimination reaction. Optimisation of the stereoelectronic properties and of the binding interactions at the enzyme active site led to substrates with high affinity and promising selectivity. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Facile Solid-Phase Synthesis and Assessment of Nucleoside Analogs as Inhibitors of Bacterial UDP-Sugar Processing Enzymes

The privileged uptake of nucleosides into cells has generated interest in the development of nucleoside-analog libraries for mining new inhibitors. Of particular interest are applications in the discovery of substrate mimetic inhibitors for the growing number of identified glycan-processing enzymes in bacterial pathogens. However, the high polarity and the need for appropriate protecting group strategies for nucleosides challenges the development of synthetic approaches. Here, we report an accessible, user-friendly synthesis that branches from a common solid phase-immobilized uridinyl-amine intermediate, which can be used as a starting point for diversity-oriented synthesis. We demonstrate the generation of five series of uridinyl nucleoside analogs for investigating inhibitor structure-activity relationships. This library was screened for inhibition of representative enzymes from three functional families including a phosphoglycosyl transferase, a UDP-aminosugar acetyltransferase, and a glycosyltransferase. These candidates were taken from the Gram-negative bacteria Campylobacter concisus and Campylobacter jejuni and the Gram-positive bacterium Clostridium difficile, respectively. Inhibition studies show that specific compound series preferentially inhibit selected enzymes, with IC 50 values ranging from 35 ± 7 μM to 174 ± 21 μM. Insights from the screen provide a strong foundation for further structural elaboration, to improve potency, which will be enabled by the same synthetic strategy. The solid-phase strategy was also used to synthesize pseudouridine analogs of lead compounds. Finally, the compounds were found to be nontoxic to mammalian cells, further supporting the opportunities for future development.National Institutes of Health (Grant R01-GM097241

Synthesis and quantitative structure-activity relationship of fatty acid amide hydrolase inhibitors: modulation at the N-portion of biphenyl-3-yl alkylcarbamates.

Alkylcarbamic acid biphenyl-3-yl esters are a class of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitors that comprises cyclohexylcarbamic acid 3'-carbamoylbiphenyl-3-yl ester (URB597), a compound with analgesic, anxiolytic-like and antidepressant-like properties in rat and mouse models. Here, we extended the structure-activity relationships (SARs) for this class of compounds by replacing the cyclohexyl ring of the parent compound cyclohexylcarbamic acid biphenyl-3-yl ester (URB524) (FAAH IC50 = 63 nM) with a selected set of substituents of different size, shape, flexibility, and lipophilicity. Docking experiments and linear interaction energy (LIE) calculations indicated that the N-terminal group of O-arylcarbamates fits within the lipophilic region of the substrate-binding site, mimicking the arachidonoyl chain of anandamide. Significant potency improvements were observed for the beta-naphthylmethyl derivative 4q (IC50 = 5.3 nM) and its 3'-carbamoylbiphenyl-3-yl ester 4z (URB880, IC50 = 0.63 nM), indicating that shape complementarity and hydrogen bonds are crucial to obtain highly potent inhibitors

Synthesis and quantitative structure-activity relationship of fatty acid amide hydrolase inhibitors: modulation at the N-portion of biphenyl-3-yl alkylcarbamates.

Alkylcarbamic acid biphenyl-3-yl esters are a class of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitors that comprises cyclohexylcarbamic acid 3'-carbamoylbiphenyl-3-yl ester (URB597), a compound with analgesic, anxiolytic-like and antidepressant-like properties in rat and mouse models. Here, we extended the structure-activity relationships (SARs) for this class of compounds by replacing the cyclohexyl ring of the parent compound cyclohexylcarbamic acid biphenyl-3-yl ester (URB524) (FAAH IC50 = 63 nM) with a selected set of substituents of different size, shape, flexibility, and lipophilicity. Docking experiments and linear interaction energy (LIE) calculations indicated that the N-terminal group of O-arylcarbamates fits within the lipophilic region of the substrate-binding site, mimicking the arachidonoyl chain of anandamide. Significant potency improvements were observed for the beta-naphthylmethyl derivative 4q (IC50 = 5.3 nM) and its 3'-carbamoylbiphenyl-3-yl ester 4z (URB880, IC50 = 0.63 nM), indicating that shape complementarity and hydrogen bonds are crucial to obtain highly potent inhibitors

Synthesis and Structure–Activity Relationship Studies ofO-Biphenyl-3-yl Carbamates as Peripherally Restricted Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolase Inhibitors

The peripherally restricted fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) inhibitor URB937 (3, cyclohexylcarbamic acid 3′-carbamoyl-6-hydroxybiphenyl-3-yl ester) is extruded from the brain and spinal cord by the Abcg2 efflux transporter. Despite its inability to enter the central nervous system (CNS), 3 exerts profound antinociceptive effects in mice and rats, which result from the inhibition of FAAH in peripheral tissues and the consequent enhancement of anandamide signaling at CB1 cannabinoid receptors localized on sensory nerve endings. In the present study, we examined the structure-activity relationships (SAR) for the biphenyl region of compound 3, focusing on the carbamoyl and hydroxyl groups in the distal and proximal phenyl rings. Our SAR studies generated a new series of peripherally restricted FAAH inhibitors and identified compound 35 (cyclohexylcarbamic acid 3′-carbamoyl-5- hydroxybiphenyl-3-yl ester) as the most potent brain-impermeant FAAH inhibitor disclosed to date