Cytokine signaling is an important characteristic of autoimmune diseases. Many pro-inflammatory cytokines signal through the Janus kinase (JAK)/Signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathway. JAK1 is important for the γ-common chain cytokines, interleukin (IL)-6, and type-I interferon (IFN) family, while TYK2 in addition to type-I IFN signaling also plays a role in IL-23 and IL-12 signaling. Intervention with monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) or JAK1 inhibitors has demonstrated efficacy in Phase III psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and rheumatoid arthritis studies, leading to multiple drug approvals. We hypothesized that a dual JAK1/TYK2 inhibitor will provide additional efficacy, while managing risk by optimizing selectivity against JAK2 driven hematopoietic changes. Our program began with a conformationally constrained piperazinyl-pyrimidine Type 1 ATP site inhibitor, subsequent work led to the discovery of PF-06700841 (compound 23), which is in Phase II clinical development (NCT02969018, NCT02958865, NCT03395184, and NCT02974868).

Several unsaturated sulfonamides underwent intramolecular aziridination when treated with PhI(OAc)(2), MgO, and catalytic Rh(2)(OAc)(4) to give bicyclic aziridines in excellent yield. Treatment of the resulting azabicyclic sulfonamides in methanol in the presence of p-TsOH resulted in exclusive opening of the aziridine ring at the most substituted position affording six- and seven-membered ring products in high yield. In contrast, the intramolecular aziridination of several cycloalkenyl-substituted carbamates did not require a Rh(II) catalyst and proceeded via an iminoiodinane intermediate. The resulting tricyclic aziridines underwent ring opening when treated with various nucleophiles to give anti-derived products as expected for nucleophilic attack at the three-membered ring. The iodine(III)-mediated reaction of a 3-indolyl-substituted carbamate, however, required a Rh(II) catalyst. The expected aziridine was not observed, but rather simultaneous spirocyclization of C(3) and stereoselective syn-acylation at C(2) occurred to give compound 41, whose structure was unequivocally established by an X-ray crystallographic study. The reaction proceeds in a stepwise manner via a metal-free zwitterionic intermediate which is attacked by a nucleophilic reagent on the same side of the amide anion. Related reactions occurred with both a 2-indolyl- and 3-benzofuranyl-substituted carbamate but with lower stereoselectivity.

Bromodomains are involved in transcriptional regulation through the recognition of acetyl lysine modifications on diverse proteins. Selective pharmacological modulators of bromodomains are lacking, although the largely hydrophobic nature of the pocket makes these modules attractive targets for small-molecule inhibitors. This work describes the structure-based design of a highly selective inhibitor of the CREB binding protein (CBP) bromodomain and its use in cell-based transcriptional profiling experiments. The inhibitor downregulated a number of inflammatory genes in macrophages that were not affected by a selective BET bromodomain inhibitor. In addition, the CBP bromodomain inhibitor modulated the mRNA level of the regulator of G-protein signaling 4 (RGS4) gene in neurons, suggesting a potential therapeutic opportunity for CBP inhibitors in the treatment of neurological disorders.

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New drugs introduced to the market every year represent privileged structures for particular biological targets. These new chemical entities (NCEs) provide insight into molecular recognition while serving as leads for designing future new drugs. This annual review describes the most likely process-scale synthetic approaches to 39 new chemical entities approved for the first time globally in 2018.

New drugs introduced to the market every year represent privileged structures for particular biological targets. These new chemical entities provide insight into molecular recognition while serving as leads for designing future new drugs. This annual review describes the most likely process-scale synthetic approaches to 19 new chemical entities that were approved for the first time in 2016.

New drugs introduced to the market every year represent privileged structures for particular biological targets. These new chemical entities (NCEs) provide insight into molecular recognition while serving as leads for designing future new drugs. This annual review describes the most likely process-scale synthetic approaches to 29 new chemical entities (NCEs) that were approved for the first time in 2015.

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