Background: Contemporary oxime antidotes to organophosphate poisoning cannot penetrate CNS to reactivate inhibited acetylcholinesterase. Results: Structural, in vitro optimization of ionizable hydroxyiminoacetamido amine acetylcholinesterase reactivators produced superior antidotal responses for VX-, sarin-, paraoxon-, and tabun-exposed mice. Conclusion: Ionizable hydroxyiminoacetamido amines are promising centrally active acetylcholinesterase reactivators. Significance: A mechanism-based iterative refinement of acetylcholinesterase reactivation kinetics coupled with pharmacokinetic analyses yields efficient CNS penetrating antidotes.

We describe here the synthesis and activity of a new series of oxime reactivators of cholinesterases (ChEs) that contain tertiary amine or imidazole protonatable functional groups. Equilibration between the neutral and protonated species at physiological pH enables the reactivators to cross the blood-brain barrier and distribute in the CNS aqueous space as dictated by interstitial and cellular pH values. Our structure-activity analysis of 134 novel compounds considers primarily imidazole aldoximes and N-substituted 2-hydroxyiminoacetamides. Reactivation capacities of novel oximes are rank ordered by their relative reactivation rate constants at 0.67 mM compared with 2-pyridinealdoxime methiodide for reactivation of four organophosphate (sarin, cyclosarin, VX, and paraoxon) conjugates of human acetylcholinesterase (hAChE). Rank order of the rates differs for reactivation of human butyrylcholinesterase (hBChE) conjugates. The 10 best reactivating oximes, predominantly hydroxyimino acetamide derivatives (for hAChE) and imidazole-containing aldoximes (for hBChE) also exhibited reasonable activity in the reactivation of tabun conjugates. Reactivation kinetics of the lead hydroxyimino acetamide reactivator of hAChE, when analyzed in terms of apparent affinity (1/K ox ) and maximum reactivation rate (k 2 ), is superior to the reference uncharged reactivators monoisonitrosoacetone and 2,3-butanedione monoxime and shows potential for further refinement. The disparate pH dependences for reactivation of ChE and the general base-catalyzed oximolysis of acetylthiocholine reveal that distinct reactivator ionization states are involved in the reactivation of ChE conjugates and in conferring nucleophilic reactivity of the oxime group.It has become increasingly apparent that efficient reinstatement of CNS acetylcholinesterase (AChE) 2 activity inhibited in organophosphate (OP)-intoxicated individuals is required for sustained symptom recovery. In particular, nerve agent OPs already used by terrorists, but also active metabolites of OP-based pesticides, readily cross the bloodbrain barrier (BBB). The exposure to OP doses close to lethality results in initial severe motor convulsions and epileptic seizures. Accumulating evidence points to these seizure events being linked to irreversible long term compromise of cognitive functions and alteration of CNS electrical excitability. Once accumulated into hydrophobic sites, OPs that do enter the CNS are retained and partition slowly back into the circulation. For example, victims of Tokyo subway nerve gas attack in 1995 were found to suffer from both short and long term symptoms of OP exposure (1-4). Accordingly, comprehensive protection from and treatment of OP intoxication to minimize the longer term consequences require administration of antidotes capable of reactivating OP-inhibited AChE in the CNS. Current therapy directed to reactivating inhibited AChE is limited to the peripheral circulation because commonly used quaternary pyridinium aldoxime reactivators do not cross the BBB at ...

Rhodium(II) azavinyl carbenes, conveniently generated from 1-sulfonyl-1,2,3-triazoles, undergo a facile, mild and convergent formal 1,3-insertion into N–H and O–H bonds of primary and secondary amides, various alcohols, and carboxylic acids to afford a wide range of vicinally bis-functionalized Z-olefins with perfect regio- and stereoselectively. Utilizing the distinctive functionality installed through these reactions, a number of subsequent rearrangements and cyclizations expand the repertoire of valuable organic building blocks constructed by reactions of transition metal carbene complexes, including α-allenyl ketones and amino-substituted heterocycles.

(Cyclopentadienyl)(cyclooctadiene) ruthenium(II) chloride [CpRuCl(cod)] catalyzes the reaction between nitrile oxides and electronically deficient 1-choro-, 1-bromo- and 1-iodoalkynes leading to 4-haloisoxazoles. Organic azides are also suitable 1,3-dipoles, resulting in 5-halo-1,2,3-triazoles. These air tolerant reactions can be performed at room temperature with 1.25 equiv of the respective 1,3-dipole relative to the alkyne component. Reactive 1-haloalkynes include propiolic amides, esters, ketones and phosphonates. Post-functionalization of the halogenated azole products can be accomplished using palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions as well as via manipulation of reactive amide groups. The lack of catalysis observed with Cp*RuCl(cod) is attributed to steric demands of the Cp* (η5-C5Me5) ligand in comparison to the parent Cp (η5-C5H5). This hypothesis is supported by the poor reactivity of (η5-C5Me4CF3)RuCl(cod), which serves as a an isosteric mimic of Cp* and as an isoelectronic analog of Cp.

Intoxication by organophosphate (OP) nerve agents and pesticides should be addressed by efficient, quickly deployable countermeasures such as antidotes reactivating acetylcholinesterase or scavenging the parent OP. We present here synthesis and initial in vitro characterization of 14 imidazole aldoximes and their structural refinement into three efficient reactivators of human butyrylcholinesterase (hBChE) inhibited covalently by nerve agent OPs, sarin, cyclosarin, VX, and the OP pesticide metabolite, paraoxon. Rapid reactivation of OP–hBChE conjugates by uncharged and nonprotonated tertiary imidazole aldoximes allows the design of a new OP countermeasure by conversion of hBChE from a stoichiometric to catalytic OP bioscavenger with the prospect of oral bioavailability and central nervous system penetration. The enhanced in vitro reactivation efficacy determined for tertiary imidazole aldoximes compared to that of their quaternary N-methyl imidazolium analogues is attributed to ion pairing of the cationic imidazolium with Asp 70, altering a reactive alignment of the aldoxime with the phosphorus in the OP–hBChE conjugate.