Design, Synthesis and Pharmacological Evaluation of Novel Conformationally Restricted N-arylpiperazine Derivatives Characterized as D2/D3 Receptor Ligands, Candidates for the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases

Autor: Thayssa Tavares da Silva Cunha, Rafaela Ribeiro Silva, Daniel Alencar Rodrigues, Pedro de Sena Murteira Pinheiro, Thales Kronenberger, Carlos Maurício R. Sant’Anna, François Noël, Carlos Alberto Manssour Fraga
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2022
Předmět:
Zdroj: Biomolecules, Vol 12, Iss 8, p 1112 (2022)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2218-273X
DOI: 10.3390/biom12081112
Popis: Most neurodegenerative diseases are multifactorial, and the discovery of several molecular mechanisms related to their pathogenesis is constantly advancing. Dopamine and dopaminergic receptor subtypes are involved in the pathophysiology of several neurological disorders, such as schizophrenia, depression and drug addiction. For this reason, the dopaminergic system and dopamine receptor ligands play a key role in the treatment of such disorders. In this context, a novel series of conformationally restricted N-arylpiperazine derivatives (5a–f) with a good affinity for D2/D3 dopamine receptors is reported herein. Compounds were designed as interphenylene analogs of the drugs aripiprazole (2) and cariprazine (3), presenting a 1,3-benzodioxolyl subunit as a ligand of the secondary binding site of these receptors. The six new N-arylpiperazine compounds were synthesized in good yields by using classical methodologies, and binding and guanosine triphosphate (GTP)-shift studies were performed. Affinity values below 1 μM for both target receptors and distinct profiles of intrinsic efficacy were found. Docking studies revealed that Compounds 5a–f present a different binding mode with dopamine D2 and D3 receptors, mainly as a consequence of the conformational restriction imposed on the flexible spacer groups of 2 and 3.
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