Discovery of TAK-041: a Potent and Selective GPR139 Agonist Explored for the Treatment of Negative Symptoms Associated with Schizophrenia.

The orphan G-protein-coupled receptor GPR139 is highly expressed in the habenula, a small brain nucleus that has been linked to depression, schizophrenia (SCZ), and substance-use disorder. High-throughput screening and a medicinal chemistry structure-activity relationship strategy identified a novel series of potent and selective benzotriazinone-based GPR139 agonists. Herein, we describe the chemistry optimization that led to the discovery and validation of multiple potent and selective in vivo GPR139 agonist tool compounds, including our clinical candidate TAK-041, also known as NBI-1065846 (compound ).

An in vitro mechanistic study to elucidate the desipramine/bupropion clinical drug-drug interaction.

There are documented clinical drug-drug interactions between bupropion and the CYP2D6-metabolized drug desipramine resulting in marked (5-fold) increases in desipramine exposure. This finding was unexpected as CYP2D6 does not play a significant role in bupropion clearance, and bupropion and its major active metabolite, hydroxybupropion, are not strong CYP2D6 inhibitors in vitro. The aims of this study were to investigate whether bupropion's reductive metabolites, threohydrobupropion and erythrohydrobupropion, contribute to the drug interaction with desipramine.

Lysosomes contribute to anomalous pharmacokinetic behavior of melanocortin-4 receptor agonists.

Purpose: A series of melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) agonists, developed for use as anti-obesity agents, were found to have unusual pharmacokinetic behavior arising from excessive retention in the liver, with nearly undetectable levels in plasma following oral administration in mice. This work investigates the molecular basis of the prolonged liver retention that provided a rational basis for the design of an analog with improved behavior.

Materials And Methods: The livers of mice were harvested and techniques were utilized to fractionate them into pools differentially enriched in organelles.

Evidence of significant contribution from CYP3A5 to hepatic drug metabolism.

CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 exhibit significant overlap in substrate specificity but can differ in product regioselectivity and formation activity. To further explore this issue, we compared the kinetics of product formation for eight different substrates, using heterologously expressed CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 and phenotyped human liver microsomes. Both enzymes displayed allosteric behavior toward six of the substrates.

Differences in the inhibition of cytochromes P450 3A4 and 3A5 by metabolite-inhibitor complex-forming drugs.

The objectives of this study were to characterize and compare the reversible inhibition and time-dependent inactivation of cytochromes P450 3A4 and 3A5 (CYP3A4 and CYP3A5) by erythromycin, diltiazem, and nicardipine. In the following experiments, we used cDNA-expressed CYP3A Supersomes and CYP3A-phenotyped human liver microsomes. We estimated the apparent constants for reversible inhibition (Ki(app) and IC50) and the irreversible kinetic constants (KI and kinact) for time-dependent inhibition.

Integrating in vitro kinetic data from compounds exhibiting induction, reversible inhibition and mechanism-based inactivation: in vitro study design.

Drug:drug interactions continue to be an obstacle for the pharmaceutical industry in the development of potential drug candidates. Considering the number of compounds that have been withdrawn from the market due to drug:drug interactions (e.g.