Antibiotic resistance is a growing threat to human health exacerbated by a lack of new antibiotics. We now describe a series of substituted diamines that produce rapid bactericidal activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and stationary-phase bacteria. These compounds reduce biofilm formation and promote biofilm dispersal in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The most potent analogue, 3 (1,13-bis{[(2,2-diphenyl)-1-ethyl]thioureido}-4,10-diazatridecane), primarily acts by depolarization of the cytoplasmic membrane and permeabilization of the bacterial outer membrane. Transmission electron microscopy confirmed that 3 disrupts membrane integrity rapidly. Compound 3 is also synergistic with kanamycin, demonstrated by the checkerboard method and by time-kill kinetic experiments. In human cell toxicity assays, 3 showed limited adverse effects against the HEK293T human kidney embryonic cells and A549 human adenocarcinoma cells. In addition, 3 produced no adverse effects on Caenorhabditis elegans development, survival, and reproduction. Collectively, diamines related to 3 represent a new class of broad-spectrum antibacterials against drug-resistant pathogens.

Background: Pdx1 interacts with the methyltransferase Set7/9 to transactivate ␤ cell genes. Results: Methylation of Pdx1 residue Lys-131 by Set7/9 augments Pdx1 activity. Conclusion:The ability of Pdx1 to regulate genes in ␤ cells is partially dependent upon its methylation by Set7/9. Significance: This study reveals a previously unappreciated role for Lys methylation in the maintenance of Pdx1 activity and ␤ cell function.

The recently discovered enzyme lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) plays an important role in the epigenetic control of gene expression, and aberrant gene silencing secondary to LSD1 dysregulation is thought to contribute to the development of cancer. We reported that (bis)guanidines, (bis)biguanides and their urea- and thiourea isosteres are potent inhibitors of LSD1, and induce the re-expression of aberrantly silenced tumor suppressor genes in tumor cells in vitro. We now report a series of small molecule amidoximes that are moderate inhibitors of recombinant LSD1, but that produce dramatic changes in methylation at the histone 3 lysine 4 (H3K4) chromatin mark, a specific target of LSD1, in Calu-6 lung carcinoma cells. In addition, these analogues increase cellular levels of secreted frizzle-related protein (SFRP) 2, H-cadherin (HCAD) and transcription factor GATA4. These compounds represent leads for an important new series of drug-like epigenetic modulators with the potential for use as antitumor agents.

Methylation at specific histone lysine residues is a critical post-translational modification that alters chromatin architecture, and dysregulated lysine methylation/demethylation is associated with the silencing of tumor suppressor genes. The enzyme lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) complexed to specific transcription factors catalyzes the oxidative demethylation of mono- and dimethyllysine 4 of histone H3 (H3K4me and H3K4me2 respectively). We have previously reported potent (bis)urea and (bis)thiourea LSD1 inhibitors that increase cellular levels of H3K4me and H3K4me2, promote the re-expression of silenced tumor suppressor genes and suppress tumor growth in vitro. Here we report the design additional (bis)urea and (bis)thiourea LSD1 inhibitors that feature 3-5-3 or 3-6-3 carbon backbone architectures. Three of these compounds displayed single-digit IC50 values in a recombinant LSD1 assay. In addition, compound 6d exhibited an IC50 of 4.2 μM against the Calu-6 human lung adenocarcinoma line, and 4.8 μM against the MCF7 breast tumor cell line, in an MTS cell viability assay. Following treatment with 6b–6d, Calu-6 cells exhibited a significant increase in the mRNA expression for the silenced tumor suppressor genes SFRP2, HCAD and p16, and modest increases in GATA4 message. The compounds described in this paper represent the most potent epigenetic modulators in this series, and have potential for use as antitumor agents.

A new series of potent potent aryl/alkylated (bis)urea- and (bis)thiourea polyamine analogues were synthesized and evaluated in vitro for their antiplasmodial activity. Altering the carbon backbone and terminal substituents increased the potency of analogues in the compound library 3-fold, with the most active compounds, 15 and 16, showing half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50 values) of 28 and 30 nM, respectively, against various Plasmodium falciparum parasite strains without any cross-resistance. In vitro evaluation of the cytotoxicity of these analogues revealed marked selectivity towards targeting malaria parasites compared to mammalian HepG2 cells (>5000-fold lower IC50 against the parasite). Preliminary biological evaluation of the polyamine analogue antiplasmodial phenotype revealed that (bis)urea compounds target parasite asexual proliferation, whereas (bis)thiourea compounds of the same series have the unique ability to block transmissible gametocyte forms of the parasite, indicating pluripharmacology against proliferative and non-proliferative forms of the parasite. In this manuscript, we describe these results and postulate a refined structure-activity relationship (SAR) model for antiplasmodial polyamine analogues. The terminally aryl/alkylated (bis)urea- and (bis)thiourea-polyamine analogues featuring a 3-5-3 or 3-6-3 carbon backbone represent a structurally novel and distinct class of potential antiplasmodials with activities in the low nanomolar range, and high selectivity against various lifecycle forms of P. falciparum parasites.

The field of epigenetics has expanded rapidly to reveal multiple new targets for drug discovery. The functional elements of the epigenomic machinery can be catagorized as writers, erasers and readers, and together these elements control cellular gene expression and homeostasis. It is increasingly clear that aberrations in the epigenome can underly a variety of diseases, and thus discovery of small molecules that modulate the epigenome in a specific manner is a viable approach to the discovery of new therapeutic agents. In this Digest, the components of epigenetic control of gene expression will be briefly summarized, and efforts to identify small molecules that modulate epigenetic processes will be described.

When γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian central nervous system, falls below a threshold level, seizures occur. One approach to raise GABA concentrations is to inhibit GABA aminotransferase (GABA-AT), a pyridoxal 5’-phosphate-dependent enzyme that degrades GABA. We have previously developed (1S,3S)-3-amino-4-difluoromethylene-1-cyclopentanoic acid (CPP-115), which is 186 times more efficient in inactivating GABA-AT than vigabatrin, the only FDA-approved inactivator of GABA-AT. We also developed (E)- and (Z)-(1S,3S)-3-amino-4-fluoromethylenyl-1-cyclopentanoic acid (1 and 2, respectively), monofluorinated analogs of CPP-115, which are comparable to vigabatrin in inactivating GABA-AT. Here we report the mechanism of inactivation of GABA-AT by 1 and 2. Both produce a metabolite that induces disruption of the Glu270-Arg445 salt bridge to accommodate interaction between the metabolite formyl group and Arg445. This is the second time that Arg445 has interacted with a ligand and is involved in GABA-AT inactivation, thereby confirming the importance of Arg445 in future inactivator design.

A series of transition-state analogues of beta-secretases 1 and 2 (BACE1, 2) inhibitors containing fused-ring or biaryl moieties were designed computationally to probe the S2 pocket, synthesized, and tested for BACE1 and BACE2 inhibitory activity. It has been shown that unlike the biaryl analogs, the fused-ring moiety is successfully accommodated in the BACE1 binding site resulting in the ligands with excellent inhibitory activity. Ligand 5b reduced 65% of Aβ40 production in N2a cells stably transfected with Swedish human APP. KeywordsAlzheimer; BACE1; Aspartic protease; computer-aided molecular design Memory loss is the most common characteristic in the clinical manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD) which affects the learning of both recent as well as recalled stored information. 1 It has been hypothesized that the therapeutic targeting of Amyloid Precursor Protein (APP) processing may mitigate the formation of toxic fragments and prevents plaque formation. This large transmembrane protein can be cleaved at three distinct sites by proteolytic enzymes collectively referred to as "secretases". 2-5 The key enzyme crucial for the release of amyloidogenic fragments during APP processing is called β-secretase (BACE1). 2 BACE1 enzyme cleaves APP at the N-terminal side of the Aβ sequence to secrete sAPPβ, producing the cell-bound, carboxyl-terminal fragment C99 (also termed C100 or CTF). 3 The C99 fragment is then cleaved by the γ-secretase enzyme in the proteolytic cascade of APP processing. The resulting amyloid-beta peptides, called Aβ40 and Aβ42 because of the number of amino acids they are comprised of, form the extracellular neuritic amyloid plaques -one of the key factors in the pathogenesis of AD. 3It has been shown that BACE1 levels are significantly elevated in vivo in rapidly autopsied brains of sporadic AD patients (< 3 hours) compared with age-matched non-AD patients. 6-*Corresponding author. Tel: +1 312 996 4174; Fax: +1 312 916 7107; email: pap4@uic.edu. a equally contributed to this work b current address is Burnham Institute, San Diego, CA Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. NIH Public Access Author ManuscriptBioorg Med Chem Lett. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2010 January 1. NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript8 There has also been reports of a correlation (R 2 = 0.54) between BACE1 activity and amyloid plaques count. 9 It was, therefore, suggested that lowering amyloid plaques in vivo may be achieved by a decrease in production of Aβ40 and Aβ42 through the inhibition of BACE1, thus opening ...