Synthesis, characterization, and SAR of arylated indenoquinoline-based cholinesterase and carbonic anhydrase inhibitors.

We report the synthesis of bromoindenoquinolines (15a-f) by Friedlander reactions in low yields (13-50%) and the conversion of the corresponding phenyl-substituted indenoquinoline derivatives 16-21 in high yields (80-96%) by Suzuki coupling reactions. To explore the structure-activity relationship (SAR), their inhibition potentials to inhibit acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), and human carbonic anhydrase cyctosolic (hCA I and II) enzymes were determined. Monophenyl (16-18) indenoquinolines significantly inhibited the AChE and BChE enzymes in ranges of IC50 37-57 nM and 84-93 nM, respectively, compared with their starting materials 15a-c and reference compounds (galanthamine and tacrine). On the other hand, these novel arylated indenoquinoline-based derivatives were effective inhibitors of the BChE, hCA I and II, BChE and AChE enzymes with Ki values in the range of 37 ± 2.04 to 88640 ± 1990 nM for AChE, 120.94 ± 37.06 to 1150.95 ± 304.48 nM for hCA I, 267.58 ± 98.05 to 1568.16 ± 438.67 nM for hCA II, and 84 ± 3.86 to 144120 ± 2910 nM for BChE. As a result, monophenyl indenoquinolines 16-18 may have promising anti-Alzheimer drug potential and 3,8-dibromoindenoquinoline amine (15f) can be novel hCA I and hCA II enzyme inhibitors.