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L. A. Thompson et al. / Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett. 21 (2011) 6909–6915
basolateral to apical permeability of 58 nm/s (efflux ratio = >4).
The data predicted the compound is a P-gp substrate. Compound
21b is only modestly protein bound, with a 24% unbound fraction
in mouse plasma and a 30% unbound fraction in rat plasma. In or-
der to deconvolute the potential P-gp effect from passive penetra-
tion of 21b into the brain we profiled the compound both in
normal mice and also in P-gp (MDR1aꢀ/ꢀ) deficient mice, and
this data has already been disclosed.16
We also fully profiled the compound in rats to ensure that both
rodent species gave similar data. Figure 6 shows the peripheral
Abeta1-40 lowering effect of compound 21b dosed s.c. (70% PEG-
400/30% water vehicle) in both wt mice (1, 3, 10, 30, and
100 mpk) and rats (3, 10, and 100 mpk) as a function of the free
plasma drug concentration. In general, the data in the rat were con-
sistent with those from the wt mouse.
brain barrier penetration in the absence of P-gp, and P-gp was
the main factor limiting efficacy of this compound.
In summary, we have developed a series of cyclic diaminopro-
pane isosteres that can be combined with a number of different
P2–P3 headgroups to provide potent BACE-1 inhibitors. Combina-
tions of the pyrrolidine-based isostere substituted with a 4-sulfone
group provided compounds that were highly potent in both en-
zyme and cellular assays and were effective at lowering plasma
Abeta in normal rodents and both plasma and brain Abeta in
P-gp deficient mice. These data demonstrate that in the absence of
P-gp, the scaffold shows good intrinsic brain penetrance. Continued
work will be necessary to remove the P-gp liability and create ana-
logs that are effective in lowering brain Ab in normal animals and
this work is ongoing.
In the rat, all doses were effective peripherally. As shown in Ta-
ble 4, the 3 mpk dose provided an 160 nM total (37 nM free) drug
concentration and led to 72% Abeta 1–40 lowering (28% of vehicle
remaining). Higher doses provided good escalation of drug expo-
sure and led to efficacy that appeared maximal at 10–15% of vehi-
cle control. Brain drug levels, however, did not rise proportionally
to the peripheral levels, with the 100 mpk dose providing total
brain drug levels of only 260 nM, giving a Brain/plasma ra-
tio = 0.05, suggesting only blood volume contamination. As is
shown in Table 4, there was no brain Abeta 1–40 lowering at any
dose.
These data in the rat are consistent with the data we published
for compound 21b in both the normal and P-gp KO mouse (com-
pound 21b is referred to as compound A in this reference).16
Peripheral Abeta lowering was similar in both the wild-type and
the P-gp KO mice, with a calculated EC50 of 12 nM free drug, a va-
lue that provides approximately a 2.5-fold coverage of the cellular
IC50 of 5 nM. There was, however, no brain efficacy up to 100 mpk.
In P-gp knockout (KO) mice, compound 21b produced robust Abeta
1–40 lowering in both plasma and brain, with similar calculated
ED50s in both compartments (brain = 50 mpk, plasma = 30 mpk).16
This data demonstrated that compound 21b had excellent blood/
Acknowledgments
The authors appreciate the contributions of the following per-
sons. Maria Pierdomenico, Kelli Jones, and Rudy Krause conducted
the rat and mouse in vivo experiments, while Tracey Fiedler and Ja-
son Corsa executed the accompanying Abeta assays. Carol Krause
and Cathy Kieras performed our HEKsw assays. Paul Morin and
Vidhyashankar Ramamurthy generated the BACE constructs used
in crystallographic studies. Lisa Kopcho generated BACE-1 enzyme
assay data.
References and notes
All new compounds reported herein gave satisfactory analytical
data including parent mass, proton NMR spectral integrity, and
high purity by HPLC characterization.
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200
150
100
50
WT mouse
Rat
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2
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Log Free Plasma Conc (nM)
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Table 4
Pharmacokinetics of compound 21b in rats
Dose
Plasma
total
Plasma Abeta
1–40 (% Veh)
Brain
level
(nM)
Brain Abeta
1–40 (% Veh) plasma
Brain/
(nM)
3 mpk
10 mpk
100 mpk 5800
160
740
28
10
15
46
78
260
85
92
91
0.32
0.11
0.05
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