Design, Synthesis, and Pharmacological Evaluation of 5,6-Disubstituted Pyridin-2(1H)-one Derivatives as Phosphodiesterase 10A (PDE10A) Antagonists.

We report the design and synthesis of novel 5,6-diarylated pyridin-2(1H)-one derivatives as pharmacophoric PDE10A inhibitors. This highly potent molecular scaffold was developed from an inactive diarylpyridine-2-amine derivative 3b by extensive and systematic analogue synthesis and SAR analysis. Further optimization of the scaffold resulted in identification of pyridin-2(1H)-one 18b as a lead compound with good potency (IC50 = 1.