We have synthesized and evaluated a series of nonpeptidic, bivalent Smac mimetics as antagonists of the inhibitor of apoptosis proteins and new anticancer agents. All these bivalent Smac mimetics bind to full-length XIAP with low nanomolar affinities and function as ultrapotent antagonists of XIAP. While these Smac mimetics bind to cIAP1/2 with similar low nanomolar affinities, their potencies to induce degradation of cIAP1/2 proteins in cells differ by more than 100-fold. The most potent bivalent Smac mimetics inhibit cell growth with IC(50) from 1 to 3 nM in the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line and are 100 times more potent than the least potent compounds. Determination of intracellular concentrations for several representative compounds showed that the linkers in these bivalent Smac mimetics significantly affect their intracellular concentrations and hence the overall cellular activity. Compound 27 completely inhibits tumor growth in the MDA-MB-231 xenografts while causing no signs of toxicity in the animals.

Looking for optimised analogues of compound 2 that might be useful in colon cancer therapy, we here explore the in vitro cytotoxicity against MDA-MB 231 human breast carcinoma, A-549 human lung carcinoma and HT-29 human colon carcinoma cell lines of several analogues and derivatives. The effect of the R2-substituent and/or the introduction of an arylmethyl side-chain at C-3, as well as the presence of a double bond in the skeleton or a methoxy group at C-1 have been investigated. New 6,15-iminoisoquino[3,2-b]3-benzazocine compounds, related to the saframycin family, in which the C(7)-N(8)-C(9)-substructure contains a lactam function, a fused oxazolidine or an aminonitrile function were also studied, and many of them showed low micromolar GI50 values.

Saframycins, safracins, renieramycins, cribrostatins, and esteinascidins are 6,15-iminoisoquino[3,2-b]3-benzazocine compounds that constitute the largest subgroup among the antitumor antibiotics belonging to the tetrahydroisoquinoline family. Their structural complexity has led to widespread synthetic attention to obtain them in both racemic and enantiopure forms. Publication in 1996 of the first total synthesis of ecteinascidin 743 by Corey's group was an important milestone, but the development of preparative protocols for these structures has continued, offering new possibilities to exploit the biological activity of the above-mentioned natural products and their analogues. This minireview is intended to update this progress following a methodological rather than a chronological organization. Besides of a brief description of the different strategies evolved from retrosynthetic analyses, which have been organized according to the order of bonding events that will link the precursors, semisynthetic approaches and a brief account of the total syntheses of ecteinascidin 743, have been analyzed.

An unprecedented, diversity-oriented strategy for the generation of 6,7-dihydro-5H-dibenzo[c,e]azepines and 5,6,7,8-tetrahydrodibenzo[c,e]azocines by a microwave-assisted copper-catalyzed intramolecular A(3)-coupling reaction is presented.

The [6 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of 2-vinylazetidines with electron-deficient isocyanates such as tosyl isocyanate proceeded smoothly in the absence of the catalyst at room temperature, and various cyclic ureas were isolated in good to high yields. Electron-deficient allenes also reacted with the 2-vinylazetidine, and the corresponding azocine derivatives were isolated.

A highly enantioselective rhodium-catalyzed [4+2+2] cycloaddition of terminal alkynes and dienyl isocyanates has been developed. The cycloaddition provides a rapid entry to highly functionalized and enantioenriched bicyclic azocines. This reaction represents the first [4+2+2] cycloaddition strategy to construct nitrogen-containing eight-membered rings.

A microwave-assisted protocol based on an Hg(OTf)(2) catalyzed intramolecular alkyne carbocyclization reaction was developed for selective construction of the indoloazocine core.

The first total synthesis of the natural product 3-hydroxy-11-norcytisine (1), structurally related to cytisine (2), a benchmark ligand at neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (NNRs), has been achieved. The synthesis permits the unambiguous confirmation of the structure originally proposed for 1 and has enabled initial biological characterization of 1 and its related compounds against NNRs.

A series of 7,8- and 8,9-fused pyrimidinone, aminopyrimidine and pyridone derivatives of 8-carboxamidocyclazocine (8-CAC) have been prepared and evaluated in opioid receptor binding assays. Targets were designed to corroborate a pharmacophore hypothesis regarding the bioactive conformation of the carboxamide of 8-CAC. In addition to the results from this study strongly supporting this pharmacophore hypothesis, a number of novel compounds with high affinity to opioid receptors have been identified.

A facile and direct synthetic entry to tricyclic imidazoloisoquinolin-3-ones and benzo[a]quinolizin-4-ones is reported based on the ring annulation of 1-unsubstituted and 1-substituted dihydroisoquinolines with azlactones under neutral conditions in a one-step procedure. Bicyclic 2,3-dihydrobenzo[d]azocin-4-ones were also prepared using simple azlactone and 1-substituted dihydroisoquinolines in a one-pot reaction.[reaction: see text]

Synthetic routes towards highly substituted eight membered ring heterocycles fused to aryl rings such as the dibenzo[b,f]azocine system are still lacking. Herein, we present a convenient convergent synthetic route towards this heterocyclic class of compounds with possible variations at positions 4, 7, and 11. One member of a library of dibenzo[b,f]azocines with different substituents at position 11 was identified to inhibit protein kinase A activity (IC(50)=122microM) but not protein kinase C.

We report the synthesis and pharmacological properties of several cytisine derivatives. Among them, two 10-substituted derivatives showed much higher selectivities for the alpha4beta2 nAChR subtype in binding assays than cytisine. The 9-vinyl derivative was found to have a very similar agonist activity profile to that of cytisine.

Pd-catalyzed intramolecular arylamination on sugar derivatives has been accomplished by using bulky biaryl phosphine ligands. An application of this methodology on a variety of D-glucose-derived substrates, 2a-f, led to the synthesis of highly functionalized cis-fused tricyclic oxazocines, 3a-e. The products could subsequently be transformed to the optically active benzoxazocine derivative 4 and tricyclic nucleoside 6. This is the first example of the synthesis of eight-membered rings via intramolecular cycloamination of furanose derivatives, which provides a very useful method for the catalytic synthesis of medium-ring heterocycles.

Chemical modification has been performed on an orally bioavailable and potent CCR5 antagonist, sulfoxide compound 4, mainly focusing on replacement of the [6,7]-fused 1-benzazepine nucleus. We designed, synthesized, and evaluated the biological activities of ring-expanded [6,8]-,[6,9]-, and [6,10]-fused compounds containing S-sulfoxide moieties, which led to the discovery of 1-benzazocine and 1-benzazonine compounds that exhibited potent inhibitory activities (equivalent to compound 4) in a binding assay. In addition, 1-benzazocine compounds possessing the S-sulfoxide moiety ((S)-(-)-5a,b,d,e) showed greater potency than compound 4 in a fusion assay. From further investigation in a multi-round infection assay, it was found that 1-isobutyl-1-benzazocine compound (S)-(-)-5b, containing the S-{[(1-propyl-1H-imidazol)-5-yl]methyl}sulfinyl group, showed the most potent anti-HIV-1 activity (IC90=0.81 nM, in MOLT4/CCR5 cells). Compound (S)-(-)-5b (TAK-652) also inhibited the replication of six macrophage-tropic (CCR5-using or R5) HIV-1 clinical isolates in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs)(mean IC90=0.25 nM). It was also absorbed after oral administration in rats, dogs, and monkeys and was thus selected as a clinical candidate. The synthesis and biological activity of the 1-benzazocine compound (S)-(-)-5b and its related derivatives are described.

A novel series of 17beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 3 (17beta-HSD3) inhibitors has been identified. These inhibitors, based on a dibenzazocine core, exhibited picomolar to low nanomolar inhibition of 17beta-HSD3 in cell-free enzymatic as well as in cell-based transcriptional reporter assays.

[reaction: see text](+/-)-Cytisine has been synthesized in 19% overall yield via a six-step approach from commercially available materials. Key features of this new strategy are as follows:(i) initial construction of the bispidine core,(ii) lithiation-transmetalation-allylation of an N-Boc-bispidine, and (iii) a Pd/C-mediated dihydropyridone oxidation-N-debenzylation process.

[reaction: see text] A novel, microwave-enhanced six-step synthesis was devised for the synthesis of N-shifted buflavine analogues. Microwave-enhanced Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling and ring-closing metathesis reactions were used as the key steps. Microwave irradiation was found to enhance the ring-closing metathesis reaction to generate the otherwise difficultly obtainable medium-sized ring system of the target molecules.

Partially and fully reduced forms of benzo-fused eight- to ten-membered nitrogen heterocycles (1-benzazecines, 1-benzazonines and 1-benzazecines) have been prepared. Conformational features, transannular distances and dynamic behavior were studied using X-ray crystallography and VT NMR spectroscopy. The amide moiety in the nine-membered benzazonine ring 5b favors N-pyramidization, whereas the ten-membered benzazecine 5c adopts an amide twist. Molecular mechanics calculations reveals a correlation between the amide twist (tau) and ring stability. The dynamic behavior of the heterocycles in solution were also found to be dependent on the extent and nature of the amide distortion. We thus conclude that ring strain of these medium-sized heterocyclic rings is relieved through amide distortion, which leads to a more stable structure.