Method for comparison of the hemodynamic effects of equi-antinociceptive oral doses of drugs in anesthetized rats.

In a typical flowchart for discovery of novel analgesic (or other) agents, a critical path often involves maximization of the separation of the therapeutic endpoint from known adverse-effect (AE) endpoint(s). Although strategies can easily be designed for in vitro paradigms such as high-throughput screening, extension to in vivo testing can represent a major obstacle to the rapid progression to the next step in development. The problem can be particularly acute when the assessment is required for oral dosing, and when it is not known if the therapeutic and AE mechanism(s) of action are the same.

3-Aza-cope rearrangement of quaternary N-allyl enammonium salts. Stereospecific 1,3 allyl migration from nitrogen to carbon on a tricyclic template.

N-Allyl enamines can undergo a [3,3] sigmatropic rearrangement known as a 3-aza-Cope (or amino-Claisen) reaction. We explored a 3-aza-Cope reaction involving 1,3 allylic migration from nitrogen to carbon in N-allyl enammonium quaternary salts, exemplified by benzo[a]quinolizine 8 and pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline 13, with an interest in stereochemistry and mechanism. Salts 8 and 13 were accessed, respectively, through stereospecific allylation of hydroxy amines 4 and 11a/11b to give 7 and 12a/12b, which were dehydrated with trifluoroacetic acid.

N-acylated alpha-(3-pyridylmethyl)-beta-aminotetralin antagoinists of the human neuropeptide Y Y5 receptor.

Alpha-(3-Pyridylmethyl)-beta-aminotetralins were acylated with amino-piperidinyl and-pyrrolidinyl acetic acids, and with (aminomethyl)cyclohexanecarboxylic acid. Reaction with acyl chlorides, chloroformates, and isocyanates gave amides 8e, carbamates 9, and ureas 10, which bound to the Y5 receptor with nanomolar affinity. Congeners 11a and 11d containing a terminal benzimidazolone group were shown to be functional Y5 antagonists.

A subpopulation of CD8+ T cells specific for melanocyte differentiation antigens expresses killer inhibitory receptors (KIR) in healthy donors: evidence for a role of KIR in the control of peripheral tolerance.

In cancer patients, NK cell inhibitory receptors (IR) are expressed on a fraction of melanoma-specific lymphocytes with a unique reactivity for tumor antigens derived from normal, nonmutated genes (differentiation antigens). It is presently not known whether expression of these receptors is induced during an immune response against melanoma cells or whether these receptors can be found on T cells harboring a self specificity for such differentiation antigens in healthy donors. By analyzing short-term cultures of CD8+ T cells primed in vitro with melanocyte differentiation antigens, we found expression of NK cell receptors on a small but consistent fraction of CD8+ T cells derived from healthy donors.

An investigation of the uroselective properties of four novel alpha(1a)-adrenergic receptor subtype-selective antagonists.

The development of alpha(1a)-adrenergic receptor (AR) subtype-selective antagonists is likely to result in uroselective agents that effectively treat benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) symptoms without causing undesirable side effects that may be due to vascular alpha(1)-AR blockade. The properties of four aryl piperazine compounds (RWJ-38063, RWJ-68141, RWJ-68157, and RWJ-69736) are described in this report and compared with the properties of tamsulosin, an alpha(1)-AR antagonist that is used in the treatment of BPH. Radioligand binding studies show that all four RWJ compounds have significantly higher affinity for the alpha(1a)-AR subtype than for the alpha(1b) or alpha(1d) subtype and display a higher level of receptor subtype selectivity than tamsulosin.

A branched DNA signal amplification assay to quantitate messenger RNA of human uncoupling proteins 1, 2, and 3.

Uncoupling proteins (UCP) are inner mitochondrial membrane transporters which dissipate the proton gradient, releasing stored energy as heat. Three subtypes of UCP have been identified so far. The regulation of UCP expression is mainly controlled at the transcriptional level, thus making the measurement of UCP mRNA beneficial for both diagnosis and research of weight disorders and diabetes.

Novel arylpiperazines as selective alpha1-adrenergic receptor antagonists.

A novel series of arylpiperazines has been synthesized and identified as antagonists of alpha1a adrenergic receptor (alpha1a-AR) implicated in benign prostatic hyperplasia. These compounds selectively bind to membrane bound alpha1a-AR with K(i)s as low as 0.66 nM.

Design, synthesis, and structure-activity relationships of phthalimide-phenylpiperazines: a novel series of potent and selective alpha(1)(a)-adrenergic receptor antagonists.

Beginning from the screening hit and literature alpha(1)-adrenergic compounds, a hybridized basic skeleton A was proposed as the pharmacophore for potent and selective alpha(1a)-AR antagonists. Introduction of a hydroxy group to increase the flexibility afforded B which served as the screening model and resulted in the identification of the second-generation lead 1. Using the Topliss approach, a number of potent and selective alpha(1a)-AR antagonists were discovered.

Nonclassical MHC class II molecules.

Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II molecules are cell surface proteins that present peptides to CD4(+) T cells. In addition to these wellcharacterized molecules, two other class II-like proteins are produced from the class II region of the MHC, HLA-DM (DM) and HLA-DO (DO) (called H2-M, or H2-DM and H2-O in the mouse). The function of DM is well established; it promotes peptide loading of class II molecules in the endosomal/lysosomal system by catalyzing the release of CLIP peptides (derived from the class II-associated invariant chain) in exchange for more stably binding peptides.

Facile solid-phase construction of indole derivatives based on a traceless, activating sulfonyl linker.

[reaction: see text] Palladium-mediated coupling/intramolecular indole cyclization of terminal alkynes with resin 8, followed by cleavage of the sulfonamide linkage, were executed under mild conditions to provide diverse indoles 10 in excellent yield and purity. This chemistry benefits from a dual-activation process that derives from use of a traceless N-sulfonyl linker. Also, direct mercuration of 9 (X = H, R = 4-Me-C6H4), followed by palladium-mediated coupling with methyl acrylate, efficiently provided 3-functionalized product 12.

Topiramate as add-on therapy: pooled analysis of randomized controlled trials in adults.

Purpose: Six double-blind, placebo-controlled trials were conducted with topiramate (TPM) initiated as adjunctive therapy in adults with treatment-resistant partial-onset seizures with or without secondary generalization.

Methods: Because protocols and study populations were similar, data from the studies were pooled and analyzed for 527 patients treated with TPM and 216 treated with placebo.

Results: Seizures were reduced > or =50% in 43% of TPM-treated patients and in 12% of placebo-treated patients (p < 0.

An overview of the preclinical aspects of topiramate: pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and mechanism of action.

In this overview, we discuss the discovery and development of topiramate (TPM) as an anticonvulsant, including notable aspects of its chemical, biologic, and pharmacokinetic properties. In particular, we highlight its anticonvulsant profile in traditional seizure tests and animal models of epilepsy and the results of recent electrophysiological and biochemical studies using cultured neurons that have revealed a unique combination of pharmacologic properties of TPM. Finally, we present a hypothesis for the mechanistic basis of the anticonvulsant activity of TPM, which proposes that TPM binds to certain membrane ion channel proteins at phosphorylation sites and thereby allosterically modulates channel conductance and secondarily inhibits protein phosphorylation.

The determination of RWJ-38705 (tramadol N-oxide) and its metabolites in preclinical pharmacokinetic studies using LC-MS/MS.

A rapid and reliable analytical method is described for the simultaneous determination of RWJ-38705 (tramadol N-oxide) and several of its major metabolites in the plasma of Sprague-Dawley rats and Beagle dogs. Sample preparation using solid phase extraction was followed by reversed phase liquid chromatography (LC) coupled with tandem mass spectrometric (MS/MS) detection in the positive ionization mode. The assay was linear for all analytes over concentrations ranging from approximately 6 to 2000 ng/ml.

1,3-Diarylcycloalkanopyrazoles and diphenyl hydrazides as selective inhibitors of cyclooxygenase-2.

Novel 1,3-diarylcycloalkanopyrazoles 1, and diphenyl hydrazides 2 were identified as selective inhibitors of cyclooxygenase-2. The 1,3-diaryl substitution pattern of the pyrazole ring in 1 differentiates these compounds from most of the known selective COX-2 inhibitors that contain two aryl rings at the adjacent positions on a heterocyclic or a phenyl ring. Similarly, the two phenyl rings in 2 are also separated by three atoms.

Investigations of artifact peaks in sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography methods.

Chromatograms of sensitive HPLC methods often show disturbing peaks, which mostly can be traced back easily. But sometimes such peaks are difficult to reproduce and therefore hard to trace. This paper describes two cases where artifact peaks arose due to contamination by the septum and by the sampling equipment, respectively, leading to misinterpretation of impurities and erroneous quantification.

In vitro metabolic products of RWJ-34130, an antiarrythmic agent, in rat liver preparations.

The in vitro metabolism of RWJ-34130, an antiarrhythmic agent, was conducted using rat hepatic 9000 x g supernatant (S9) and microsomes in an NADPH-generating system, and the rat liver perfusion. The 100 and 20 microg ml(-1) concentrations of RWJ-34130 aqueous solution were used for microsomal incubation and liver perfusion, respectively. Unchanged RWJ-34130 (approximately 77-78% of the sample in both S9 and microsomes) plus a major metabolite, RWJ-34130 sulfoxide (20% of the sample in both S9 and microsomes) were profiled, isolated and identified from both hepatic S9 and microsomal incubates (60 min) using HPLC and mass spectrometry (MS), and by comparison to a synthetic RWJ-34130 sulfoxide, which was synthesized by reacting RWJ-34130 with MCPBA (meta-chloroperoxy benzoic acid).

A capillary gas chromatographic assay with nitrogen phosphorus detection for the quantification of topiramate in human plasma, urine and whole blood.

An accurate and robust method involving liquid liquid extraction and capillary gas chromatographic (GC) assay with nitrogen phosphorus detection (NPD) was developed and validated for the quantitative determination of topiramate [2,3:4,5-bis-O-(-1-methylethylidene)-beta-D-fructopyranose sulfamate], Topamax, an anticonvulsant drug, in human plasma, urine, and whole blood. The galactopyranose analog of topiramate was used as the internal standard. A DB-5, fused silica capillary column (J&W Scientific, Folsom, CA) was used, yielding typical retention times of 4.

N-(sulfonamido)alkyl[tetrahydro-1H-benzo[e]indol-2-yl]amines: potent antagonists of human neuropeptide Y Y5 receptor.

[3a,4,5,9b-Tetrahydro-1H-benzo[e]indol-2-yl]amines were prepared via reductive amination and concomitant cyclization of alpha-cyanomethyl-beta-aminotetralins. N-acylation with omega-sulfonamido-carboxylic acids and subsequent reduction afforded a series of N-(sulfonamido)alkyl[tetrahydro-1H-benzo[e]indol-2-yl]amines, which bound to the human neuropeptide Y Y5 receptor with nanomolar affinity.

A role for MHC class I down-regulation in NK cell lysis of herpes virus-infected cells.

NK cells represent an efficient first line of defense against virus infection, preceding the generation of adaptive T cell responses. However, the NK cell receptors involved in the recognition of virus-infected cells remain ill defined. We studied the in vitro response of isolated human NK cell clones to cells infected by the herpes viruses, herpes simplex virus (HSV) and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV).

KIR expression on self-reactive CD8+ T cells is controlled by T-cell receptor engagement.

Natural killer cell tolerance is maintained by the interaction of killer inhibitory receptors (KIRs) with self-major histocompatibility complex class I gene products. A subset of T cells also expresses inhibitory receptors, but the functional significance of these receptors on T cells is unclear. Here we show that, in the absence of T-cell receptor (TCR) engagement, KIRs expressed on CD8+ T cells are slowly downregulated by KIR ligands expressed on antigen-presenting cells.

Galanin inhibits acetylcholine release from rat cerebral cortex via a pertussis toxin-sensitive G(i)protein.

Galanin has been implicated in various physiological functions including memory, feeding and pain perception. Using rat cerebral cortical slices and synaptosome preparations incubated with [(3)H]choline in Kreb's-Ringer solution, galanin was shown to inhibit both spontaneous and K(+)-stimulated [(3)H]ACh release in a concentration-related manner [EC(50)= 35 nM]. The galanin-mediated inhibition on spontaneous and K(+)-stimulated [(3)H]ACh release was respectively regulated by pertussis toxin-sensitive G(alphai3)and G(alphai1).

Thrombin receptor-activating peptides (TRAPs): investigation of bioactive conformations via structure-activity, spectroscopic, and computational studies.

The thrombin receptor (PAR-1) is an unusual transmembrane G-protein coupled receptor in that it is activated by serine protease cleavage of its extracellular N-terminus to expose an agonist peptide ligand, which is tethered to the receptor itself. Synthetic peptides containing the agonist motif, such as SFLLRN for human PAR-1, are capable of causing full receptor activation. We have probed the possible bioactive conformations of thrombin receptor-activating peptides (TRAPs) by systematic introduction of certain conformational perturbations, involving alpha-methyl, ester psi(COO), and reduced-amide psi(CH2N) scans, into the minimum-essential agonist sequence (SFLLR) to probe the importance of the backbone conformation and amide NH hydrogen bonding.