Mateusz Mach

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase δ (PI3Kδ), a member of the class I PI3K family, is an essential signaling biomolecule that regulates the differentiation, proliferation, migration, and survival of immune cells. The overactivity of this protein causes cellular dysfunctions in many human disorders, for example, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, including asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In this work, we designed and synthesized a new library of small-molecule inhibitors based on indol-4-yl-pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine with IC₅₀ values in the low nanomolar range and high selectivity against the PI3Kδ isoform. CPL302253 (54), the most potent compound of all the structures obtained, with IC₅₀ = 2.8 nM, is a potential future candidate for clinical development as an inhaled drug to prevent asthma.

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) is the family of lipid kinases participating in vital cellular processes such as cell proliferation, growth, migration, or cytokines production. Due to the high expression of these proteins in many human cells and their involvement in metabolism regulation, normal embryogenesis, or maintaining glucose homeostasis, the inhibition of PI3K (especially the first class which contains four subunits: α, β, γ, δ) is considered to be a promising therapeutic strategy for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or multiple sclerosis. In this work, we synthesized a library of benzimidazole derivatives of pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine representing a collection of new, potent, active, and selective inhibitors of PI3Kδ, displaying IC₅₀ values ranging from 1.892 to 0.018 μM. Among all compounds obtained, CPL302415 (6) showed the highest activity (IC₅₀ value of 18 nM for PI3Kδ), good selectivity (for PI3Kδ relative to other PI3K isoforms: PI3Kα/δ = 79; PI3Kβ/δ = 1415; PI3Kγ/δ = 939), and promising physicochemical properties. As a lead compound synthesized on a relatively large scale, this structure is considered a potential future candidate for clinical trials in SLE treatment.

GPR40 (FFAR1) is a promising target for the managing type 2 diabetes (T2D). The most advanced GPR40 agonist TAK-875 exhibited satisfactory glucose-lowering effects in phase II and III studies. However, the phase III studies of TAK-875 revealed drug-induced liver injury (DILI). It is unknown whether DILI is a consequence of a specific GPR40 agonist or is an inherent feature of all GPR40 agonists. CPL207280 is a novel GPR40 agonist that improves diabetes in Zucker Diabetic Fatty (ZDF) rats, Goto Kakizaki (GK) rats and db/db mice. In this report, the DILI-related toxicity of CPL207280 was compared directly with that of TAK-875. In vitro studies evaluating hepatic biliary transporter inhibition, mitochondrial function, and metabolic profiling were performed in hepatocytes from different species. The long term toxicity of CPL207280 was studied in vivo in rats and monkeys. Activity of CPL207280 was one order of magnitude lesser than that of TAK-875 for the inhibition of bile acid transporters. CPL207280 had a negligible effect on the hepatic mitochondria. In contrast to TAK-875, which was metabolized through toxic glucuronidation, CPL207280 was metabolized mainly through oxidation. No deleterious hepatic effects were observed in chronically treated healthy and diabetic animals. The study presents promising data on the feasibility of creating a liver-safe GPR40 agonist. Additionally, it can be concluded that DILI is not a hallmark of GPR40 agonists; it is linked to the intrinsic properties of an individual agonist.

n‐Pentenyl orthoesters (NPOEs) undergo routine acid catalyzed rearrangement into 2‐O‐acyl n‐pentenyl glycosides (NPGs). The reactant and product can both function as glycosyl donors affording 1,2‐trans linked glycosides predominantly. However, both donors differ in their rates of reactions, the yields they produce, and the nature of their byproducts, indicating that the NPOE/NPG pair may not be reacting through the same intermediates. We have therefore applied quantum chemical calculations using DFT methods and MP second order perturbation theory to learn more about orthoesters and their 2‐O‐acyl glycosidic counterparts. The calculations show that in the case of a manno NPG and NPOE pair, each donor goes initially to a different cationic intermediate. Thus, the former goes to a high‐energy oxocarbenium ion before descending to a trioxolenium ion in which the charge is distributed over the pyrano ring oxygen, as well as the carbonyl and ether oxygen atoms of the putative C2 ester. On the other hand, ionization of the NPOE produces a dioxolenium ion lying slightly above the more stable trioxolenium counterpart. For the gluco pair, the NPG also goes to a very high‐energy oxocarbenium ion, which also descends to a trioxolenium ion. However, unlike the manno analogue, the gluco NPOE does not give a dioxolenium ion; indeed, the dioxolenium is not energetically distinguishable from the trioxolenium counterpart. The theoretical observations have been tested experimentally. Thus, it was found that with manno derivatives, the orthoester is a more reactive donor than the corresponding NPG donor, whereas, for gluco derivatives, there is no advantage to using one over the other, unless one resorts to carefully selected promoters.

Lemieux's extensive work on replacement reactions at the anomeric center helped to establish the fact that the O-2-protecting group of a donor exerts powerful control over stereoselectivity in glycoside coupling reactions. This manuscript shows that the O-2-protecting group of a donor also exerts powerful, indeed sometimes total, control over regioselectivity in glycosidation of diols. The latter acceptors also exhibit preferences over the donor, thereby providing evidence for the concept of reciprocal donor acceptor selectivity (RDAS). The latter concept is put to the test by simultaneously presenting an acceptor diol with equivalent amounts of two donors, in the hope of achieving double differential glycosidation leading to one-pot assembly of a trisaccharide. When the pair of donors did not conform to RDAS principles the reaction did not proceed beyond a dissacharide. However, when the pair was RDAS sanctioned, a single trisaccharide (out of four possibilities) was obtained.Key words: regiocontrolled glycosidation, armed and disarmed donors, di- and trioxolenium ions, oxocarbenium ion.

Glycosidation of several vicinal diols reveals that exquisite regioselectivity can be achieved by using 2-O-benzoyl n-pentenyl glycoside donors and/or their cyclic 1,2-ortho ester counterparts. The regioselective preferences for both are the same, although ratios and yields may differ. In stark contrast, glycosidation of the diols with the corresponding 2-O-benzylated donors gives poor, if any, regioselectivity.