Hit, Lead & Candidate Discovery After acetylcholine is released into the synaptic cleft, it is reabsorbed or deactivated by acetylcholinesterase (AChE). Studies on Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the mid‐20th century proved that cognitive dysfunctions are associated with cholinergic neurotransmission. Drugs, such as tacrine, rivastigmine, donepezil, and galantamine are known as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors. However, these drugs have limited use in advanced AD and dementia. Recently, the anticholinesterase activity of various heterocyclic‐framed compounds, including piperazine derivatives, has been investigated, and compounds with similar effects to known drugs have been identified. The aim of this study was to design new donepezil analogs. In this study, 66 original piperazinyl thiazole derivatives were synthesized by the reaction of piperazine N′‐benzoyl thioamides and bromoacetophenones to inhibit AChE. Biological activity was measured by the Ellman method. Compounds 35, 38, 40, 45, 57, and 61 showed a high inhibitory effect among the series (80.36%–83.94% inhibition), and donepezil had a 96.42% inhibitory effect. The IC50 values of compounds 35, 38, and 40, were calculated as 0.9767 μM, 0.9493 μM, and 0.8023 μM, respectively. Compound 45 (IC50 = 1.122), Compound 57 (IC50 = 1.2130) and 61 (IC50 = 0.9193) also exhibited good activity on AChE. Molecular modeling studies were in agreement with the predictions. Trp286, Arg296, and Tyr341 were the key amino acids at the active site. Both donepezil and synthesized compounds seemed to interact with these residues.

Dementia is a cognitive disorder mostly associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) in addition to being seen in many other diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). The limited number of drugs is not sufficient to provide adequate improvement to increase the quality of life of patients suffering from this symptom; therefore, all treatment options should be evaluated in detail. In this study, new molecules, [2‐(4‐(2/3/4‐substituted phenyl)piperazin‐1‐yl)‐4‐phenylthiazol‐5‐yl][3/4‐substituted phenyl]methanone derivatives (1‐44), were obtained and analyzed in terms of their anticholinesterase activities. Kinetic mode and molecular interactions were also evaluated. An enzyme inhibition study was undertaken on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) using the Ellman method. Maestro program was used in molecular modeling studies. Forty‐four compounds were evaluated on AChE and BChE enzymes at 10−3 and 10−4 concentrations. The inhibition concentrations were calculated as 0.268μM to 2.104μM for six compounds (4, 5, 16, 27, 37, and 38) on AChE. Compound 5 including the 4‐methoxy substituent (IC50: 0.268μM) and compound 38 containing the 4‐methoxy and 3‐methyl substituents (IC50: 0.286μM) showed the highest AChE inhibitory activity. They were further examined in terms of hydrogen bonding with Arg296 and Ar‐Ar interaction with Trp286. The activity of compound 5 was also assessed in mixed‐type kinetic mode.

The antioxidant, antimalarial, antibacterial, and antitumor activities of thiosemicarbazones have made this class of compounds important for medicinal chemists. In addition, thiosemicarbazones are among the most potent and well-known ribonucleotide reductase inhibitors. In this study, 24 new thiosemicarbazone derivatives were synthesized, and the structures and purity of the compounds were determined by IR, 1 H NMR, 13 C NMR, mass spectroscopy, and elemental analysis. The IC 50 values of these 24 compounds were determined with an assay for ribonucleotide reductase inhibition. Compounds 19, 20, and 24 inhibited ribonucleotide reductase enzyme activity at a higher level than metisazone as standard. The cytotoxic effects of these compounds were measured on the MCF7 (human breast adenocarcinoma) and HEK293 (human embryonic kidney) cell lines. Similarly, compounds 19, 20, and 24 had a selective effect on the MCF7 and HEK293 cell lines, killing more cancer cells than cisplatin as standard. The compounds (especially 19, 20, and 24 as the most active ones) were then subjected to docking experiments to identify the probable interactions between the ligands and the enzyme active site. The complex formation was shown qualitatively. The ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion) properties of the compounds were analyzed using in-silico techniques.

No abstract