Fragment-based Scaffold Hopping: Identification of Potent, Selective, and Highly Soluble Bromo and Extra Terminal Domain (BET) Second Bromodomain (BD2) Inhibitors

J Med Chem. 2021 Aug 12;64(15):10772-10805. doi: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.1c00365. Epub 2021 Jul 13.

Abstract

The profound efficacy of pan-BET inhibitors is well documented, but these epigenetic agents have shown pharmacology-driven toxicity in oncology clinical trials. The opportunity to identify inhibitors with an improved safety profile by selective targeting of a subset of the eight bromodomains of the BET family has triggered extensive medicinal chemistry efforts. In this article, we disclose the identification of potent and selective drug-like pan-BD2 inhibitors such as pyrazole 23 (GSK809) and furan 24 (GSK743) that were derived from the pyrrole fragment 6. We transpose the key learnings from a previous pyridone series (GSK620 2 as a representative example) to this novel class of inhibitors, which are characterized by significantly improved solubility relative to our previous research.

MeSH terms

  • Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
  • Furans / chemistry
  • Furans / pharmacology*
  • Humans
  • Molecular Structure
  • Proteins / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Proteins / metabolism
  • Pyrazoles / chemistry
  • Pyrazoles / pharmacology*
  • Structure-Activity Relationship

Substances

  • Furans
  • Proteins
  • Pyrazoles
  • bromodomain and extra-terminal domain protein, human
  • pyrazole