, which showed a powerful GlyT1 inhibitory activity (IC 50 1.8 nM), good plasma exposure and a plasma to brain penetration in rats that was sufficient to evaluate the compound's pharmacological properties. Compound 7w showed significant effects in several rodent models for schizophrenia without causing any undesirable central nervous system side effects.Key words glycine transporter 1 inhibitor; ligand based drug design; schizophrenia; structure-activity relationship N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor hypofunction is thought to be involved in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.1,2) This NMDA hypofunction hypothesis is based on the observation that NMDA receptor antagonists mimic the positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia. 3,4)