Structure-Based Design and Optimization of FPPQ, a Dual-Acting 5-HT<sub>3</sub> and 5-HT<sub>6</sub> Receptor Antagonist with Antipsychotic and Procognitive Properties
Paweł Zajdel, Katarzyna Grychowska, Szczepan Mogilski, Rafał Kurczab, Grzegorz Satała, Ryszard Bugno, Tomasz Kos, Joanna Gołębiowska, Natalia Malikowska‐Racia, Agnieszka Nikiforuk, Séverine Chaumont‐Dubel, Xavier Bantreil, Maciej Pawłowski, Jean Martínez, Gilles Subra, Frédéric Lamaty, Philippe Marin, Andrzej J. Bojarski, Piotr Popik
Abstract
High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide In line with recent clinical trials demonstrating that ondansetron, a 5-HT 3 receptor (5-HT 3 R) antagonist, ameliorates cognitive deficits of schizophrenia and the known procognitive effects of 5-HT 6 receptor (5-HT 6 R) antagonists, we applied the hybridization strategy to design dual-acting 5-HT 3 /5-HT 6 R antagonists. We identified the first-in-class compound FPPQ, which behaves as a 5-HT 3 R antagonist and a neutral antagonist 5-HT 6 R of the Gs pathway. FPPQ shows selectivity over 87 targets and decent brain penetration. Likewise, FPPQ inhibits phencyclidine (PCP)-induced hyperactivity and displays procognitive properties in the novel object recognition task. In contrast to FPPQ, neither 5-HT 6 R inverse agonist SB399885 nor neutral 5-HT 6 R antagonist CPPQ reversed (PCP)-induced hyperactivity. Thus, combination of 5-HT 3 R antagonism and 5-HT 6 R antagonism, exemplified by FPPQ, contributes to alleviating the positive-like symptoms. Present findings reveal critical structural features useful in a rational polypharmacological approach to target 5-HT 3 /5-HT 6 receptors and encourage further studies on dual-acting 5-HT 3 /5-HT 6 R antagonists for the treatment of psychiatric disorders.