Synthesis, binding, and modeling studies of new cytisine derivatives, as ligands for neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes
Tasso, B.; Canu Boido, C.; Terranova, E.; Gotti, C.; Riganti, L.; Clementi, F.; Artali, R.; Bombieri, G.; Meneghetti, F.; Sparatore, F.
Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 52(14): 4345-4357
2009
ISSN/ISBN: 1520-4804 PMID: 19548687 DOI: 10.1021/jm900225j
Accession: 056083845
The availability of drug affecting neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) may have important therapeutic potential for the treatment of several CNS pathologies. Pursuing our efforts on the systematic structural modification of cytisine and N-arylalkyl and N-aroylalkyl cytisines were synthesized and tested for the displacement of [(3)H]-epibatidine and [(125)I]-alpha-bungarotoxin from the most widespread brain nAChRs subtypes alpha(4)beta(2) and alpha(7), respectively. While the affinity for alpha(7) subtype was rather poor (K(i) from 0.4 to >50 microM), the affinity for alpha(4)beta(2) subtype was very interesting, with nanomolar K(i) values for the best compounds. The N-substituted cytisines were docked into the rat and human alpha(4)beta(2) nAChR models based on the extracellular domain of a molluscan acetylcholine binding protein. The docking results agreed with the binding data, allowing the detection of discrete amino acid residues of the alpha and beta subunits essential for the ligand binding on rat and human nAChRs, providing a novel structural framework for the development of new alpha(4)beta(2) selective ligands.