Publications by authors named "Samuele Joppolo di Ventimiglia"

The histone deacetylases (HDACs) are able to regulate gene expression, and histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) emerged as a new class of agents in the treatment of cancer as well as other human disorders such as neurodegenerative diseases. In the present investigation, we report on the synthesis and biological evaluation of compounds derived from the expansion of a HDAC inhibitor scaffold having N-hydroxy-3-phenyl-2-propenamide and N-hydroxy-3-(pyridin-2-yl)-2-propenamide as core structures and containing a phenyloxopropenyl moiety, either unsubstituted or substituted by a 4-methylpiperazin-1-yl or 4-methylpiperazin-1-ylmethyl group. The compounds were evaluated for their ability to inhibit nuclear HDACs, as well as for their in vitro antiproliferative activity. Moreover, their metabolic stability in microsomes and aqueous solubility were studied and selected compounds were further characterized by in vivo pharmacokinetic experiments. These compounds showed a remarkable stability in vivo, compared to hydroxamic acid HDAC inhibitors that have already entered clinical trials. The representative compound 30b showed in vivo antitumor activity in a human colon carcinoma xenograft model.

Chiral pyrazoline amino acids (3aR,4S,6aR)-1a and (3aR,4S,6aR)-1b, and (3aS,6S,6aS)-2a and (3aS,6S,6aS)-2b, which are conformationally constrained analogues of glutamic and homoglutamic acid, respectively, were prepared via a strategy based on the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of a nitrile imine to methyl N-Boc-3,4-didehydro-(S)-prolinate. The new 'amino acids' were tested for activity at ionotropic glutamate receptors. Solely the derivative (3aR,4S,6aR)-1a, which is structurally related to the previously described 4,5-dihydroisoxazole analogue (S)-CIP-A, turned out to be a potent and selective agonist for the AMPA receptors. The biological activity is due to the interaction with the orthosteric glutamate binding site.

N1-substituted bicyclic pyrazole amino acids (S)-9a-9c and (R)-9a-9c, which are conformationally constrained analogues of glutamic acid, were prepared via a strategy based on a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition. The new amino acids were tested for activity at ionotropic and metabotropic glutamate receptors. Some of them turned out to be selective for the NMDA receptors, where they behaved as weak antagonists. The biological activity is mainly due to the interaction with the glutamate binding site, and not with the glycine co-agonist site.

Bicyclic acidic amino acids (+/-)-6 and (+/-)-7, which are conformationally constrained homologues of glutamic acid, were prepared via a strategy based on a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition. The new amino acids were tested toward ionotropic and metabotropic glutamate receptor subtypes; both of them behaved as antagonists at mGluR1,5 and as agonists at mGluR2. Furthermore, whereas (+/-)-6 was inactive at all ionotropic glutamate receptors, (+/-)-7 displayed a quite potent antagonism at the NMDA receptors. In the in vivo tests on DBA/2 mice, the compounds displayed an anticonvulsant activity. The interesting pharmacological profile of (+/-)-7 qualifies it as a lead of novel neuroprotective agents.

A 39-member library of bile acid derivatives was prepared starting from 3alpha,7alpha,12alpha-trihydroxy-5beta-cholan-24-oic acid methyl ester using a combinatorial biocatalytic approach. A regioselective oxidation step, catalyzed by hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases, followed by an acylation step with a series of different acyl donors catalyzed by Candida antarctica lipase B, led to the modification of the bile acid scaffold. Each member of the library was obtained in high purity and good yield.