Structure-activity relationships in human toll-like receptor 8-active 2,3-diamino-furo[2,3- c ]pyridines

Deepak B. Salunke, Euna Yoo, Nikunj M. Shukla, Rajalakshmi Balakrishna, Subbalakshmi S. Malladi, Katelyn J. Serafin, Victor W. Day, Xinkun Wang, Sunil A. David*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

79 Scopus citations

Abstract

In our ongoing search toward identifying novel and synthetically simpler candidate vaccine adjuvants, we hypothesized that the imidazo[1,2-a]pyrazines, readily accessible via the Groebke-Blackburn-Bienaymé multicomponent reaction, would possess sufficient structural similarity with TLR7/8-agonistic imidazoquinolines. With pyridoxal as the aldehyde component, furo[2,3-c]pyridines, rather than the expected imidazo[1,2-a]pyridines, were obtained, which were characterized by NMR spectroscopy and crystallography. Several analogues were found to activate TLR8-dependent NF-κB signaling. In a focused library of furo[2,3-c]pyridines, a distinct SAR was observed with varying substituents at C2. In human PBMCs, none of the furo[2,3-c]pyridines showed any proinflammatory cytokine induction but upregulated several chemokine ligand genes. In immunization studies in rabbits, the most active compound showed prominent adjuvantic effects. The complete lack of proinflammatory cytokine induction coupled with strong adjuvantic activity of the novel furo[2,3-c]pyridines render this hitherto unknown chemotype an attractive class of compounds which are expected to be devoid of local or systemic reactogenicity.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)8137-8151
Number of pages15
JournalJournal of Medicinal Chemistry
Volume55
Issue number18
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 27 2012

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Drug Discovery
  • Molecular Medicine

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Structure-activity relationships in human toll-like receptor 8-active 2,3-diamino-furo[2,3- c ]pyridines'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this