Synthesis and characterization of 1,3-dihydro-benzo[b][1,4]diazepin-2-one derivatives: Part 4. In vivo active potent and selective non-competitive metabotropic glutamate receptor 2/3 antagonists

  • Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2010 Dec 1;20(23):6969-74. doi: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2010.09.125.
Thomas J Woltering  1 Jürgen Wichmann Erwin Goetschi Frédéric Knoflach Theresa M Ballard Jörg Huwyler Silvia Gatti
Affiliations
  • 1. Discovery Chemistry, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Basel, Switzerland. [email protected]
Abstract

This study completes a series of papers devoted to the characterization of the non-competitive mGluR2/3 antagonist properties of 1,3-dihydro-benzo[b][1,4]diazepin-2-one derivatives with particular emphasis on derivatizations compatible with brain penetration and in vivo activity. Especially the compounds bearing a para-pyridine consistently showed in vivo activity in rat behavioral models after oral administration, for example, blockade of the mGluR2/3 agonist LY354740-induced hypoactivity and improvement of a working memory deficit induced either by LY354740 or scopolamine in the delayed match to position task (DMTP). Moreover, combination studies with a cholinesterase inhibitor show apparent synergistic effects on working memory impairment induced by scopolamine.