MK-5204 is a broad spectrum Candida antifungal agent derived from the natural product, enfumafungin. I was impressed that the molecule not only demonstrates oral efficacy but also has good oral PK in higher species (dog, cyno), given that the molecule is a large zwitterion with several very polar groups, including a primary amide, primary [...]

“Compound 6f” is a potent macrocyclic factor XIa inhibitor (<1 nM) that is highly selective against other serine proteases and has excellent oral PK (high bioavailability, low clearance). The BMS team was able to troubleshoot metabolic instability through met. ID, which revealed a hotspot outside of the macrocycle.

“Compound 34” is a mechanism-based inhibitor of lysine-specific demethylase LSD1 (aka KDM1A). LSD1 has an FAD co-factor which is covalently modified by the cyclopropylamine in compound 34 likely through an electron-transfer mechanism (as for tranylcypromine and MAOs). Interestingly, the 4,4-spiro amine provided an improvement to in vitro [...]

GNE-149 is an efficient monovalent degrader and full antagonist of estrogen receptor alpha with significant oral bioavailability in higher species. The standard-of-care selective ER degrader (SERD) fulvestrant is not orally bioavailable and is believed to achieve incomplete target occupancy in humans. The full antagonist profile of GNE-149 is [...]

[18F]LSN3316612 is a PET radiotracer for quantifying levels of O-GlcNAc hydrolase (OGA) in the brain. OGA is an enzyme involved in the post-translational modification of tau protein, and OGA may be a useful biomarker for neurodegenerative disease drug development. The fluorine radiolabel was introduced through nucleophilic aromatic [...]

RO7185876 is a gamma-secretase modulator (GSM) intended for treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. GSMs, which act by stabilizing the enzyme/substrate complex to promote generation of shorter peptides rather than inhibiting enzyme activity, and hence are anticipated to be less toxic than gamma-secretase inhibitors (GSI’s) which were abandoned due [...]

ONO-8430506 is a potent autotaxin phosphodiesterase inhibitor with significant oral exposure and low clearance in higher species. Autotaxin contributes to lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) production has been explored as a target in various diseases involving LPA signalling including IPF (GLPG1690, Ph. III), hyperplasia, and cancer (this paper) [...]

“Compound 15” is a BACE1 selective inhibitor with a fluoro-olefin replacement for an N-aryl amide without the liability of a potential aniline metabolite. The compound has good oral PK in rodents, which was likely challenging to obtain with the thioamidine core common to BACE1 inhibitors. As usual for Amgen there’s some pretty cool synthetic [...]

NLG802 is a prodrug of the IDO1 inhibitor indoximod with significantly enhanced oral exposure. Both the acid and amine functionalities of indoximod are protected as an ethyl ester and leucine amide, respectively. Prodrugs are generally difficult to develop so it’s interesting that two biotransformations are employed. The molecule is first [...]

BMS-986235/LAR-1219 is an FPR1-sparing FPR2-selective agonist intended to help resolve chronic inflammation/promote wound healing to prevent serious complications like heart failure. It’s a very efficient molecule and is orally efficacious in a mouse myocardial infarction model at doses as low as 0.3 mg/pk, despite having 3 N-H donors (urea + [...]

eFT226 (zotatifin) is a beautiful natural product-derived molecule that inhibits the RNA helicase eIF4A by forming a ternary complex between it, eIF4A, and polypurine RNA. Interestingly, the stability of the ternary complex depends on the RNA sequence bound to eIF4A, with greatest activity for AGAGAG-based complexes. The molecule demonstrates [...]

JNJ-54717793 is a selective antagonist of the orexin-1 receptor intended for use in anxiety disorders, in contrast to dual orexin-1/2 inhibitors and orexin-2 inhibitors typically applied for sleep disorders. It’s a surprisingly large molecule (three aromatic rings and a bicycle) for an oral, brain-penetrant clinical candidate with predicted [...]

DS-1971a is a potent, isoform-selective selective arylsulfonamide NaV1.7 inhibitor intended for the treatment of neuropathic pain. It has a surprisingly long residence time on NaV1.7, which the authors suggest contributes to better than predicted in vivo activity. 1971a is a good example of a compound which was successfully advanced to [...]

“Compound 6g” is a potent, selective, and reversible inhibitor of monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL), which degrades the cannabinoid receptor (CB) agonist 2-arachidononylglycerol (2-AG) to arachadonic acid (AA). Inhibition of MAGL therefore indirectly agonizes CB receptors and reduces inflammatory AA levels, which may be beneficial for a range of [...]

GSK232 is a highly selective cell-penetrant inhibitor of the non-BET CECR2 bromodomain with >500-fold selectivity over BET-family bromodomains identified during a campaign to find selective inhibitors of the bromodomain ATAD2. Since bromodomain-containing complexes are highly modular and have scaffolding functions, their roles in biology are [...]

LEI401 is a selective, brain-penetrant inhibitor of NAPE-PLD, an enzyme involved in the biosynthesis of various N-acylethanolamine (NAE) signaling lipids, and is a potentially useful tool molecule for understanding the basic biology around this target. The compound emerged as the result of an academic collaboration, including an HTS done with [...]

Tucatinib is the third approved HER2 kinase inhibitor (after lapatinib and neratinib), but differentiates itself due to its selectivity against the closely related EGFR, which is hypothesized to be a source of undesired side effects with prior inhibitors. Impressively, it’s also demonstrated activity in HER2+ breast cancers with brain [...]

S6821 is one of two potent and selective TAS2R8 GPCR antagonists disclosed by Firmenich, a fragrance and flavor company. These compounds block bitter taste receptors and don’t have significant systemic exposure, and have been approved as safe for use. I thought it was interesting to see high-quality medicinal chemistry applied in a [...]