The first synthesis of 1,19-aza-1,19-desoxy-avermectin B(1a) (2) is described. This new macrolactam, prepared efficiently from avermectin B(1a) (1a) in seven steps, was designed to form an intramolecular hydrogen bond between the amide carbonyl and the adjacent C7 tertiary hydroxyl via a six-center hydrogen bonding network. The presence of this intramolecular hydrogen bond is anticipated to confer additional conformational rigidity to the 16-membered macrocycle.

Aberrant gene-silencing through dysregulation of polycomb protein activity has emerged as an important oncogenic mechanism in cancer, implicating polycomb proteins as important therapeutic targets. Recently, an inhibitor targeting EZH2, the methyltransferase component of PRC2, received FDA approval following promising clinical responses in cancer patients. However, the current array of EZH2 inhibitors have poor brain-penetrance limiting their use in patients with CNS malignancies, a number of which have been shown to be sensitive to EZH2 inhibition. To address this need, we have identified a chemical strategy, based on computational modeling of pyridone-containing EZH2 inhibitor scaffolds, to minimize P-glycoprotein activity and here we report the first brain-penetrant EZH2 inhibitor, TDI-6118 (compound 5). Additionally, in the course of our attempts to optimize this compound we discovered TDI-011904 (compound 21); a novel, highly-potent, and peripherally active EZH2 inhibitor based on a 7 member ring structure.