17β-Hydroxysteroid
dehydrogenase 2 (17β-HSD2) catalyzes
the inactivation of estradiol into estrone. This enzyme is expressed
only in a few tissues, and therefore its inhibition is considered
as a treatment option for osteoporosis to ameliorate estrogen deficiency.
In this study, ligand-based pharmacophore models for 17β-HSD2
inhibitors were constructed and employed for virtual screening. From
the virtual screening hits, 29 substances were evaluated in vitro
for 17β-HSD2 inhibition. Seven compounds inhibited 17β-HSD2
with low micromolar IC50 values. To investigate structure–activity
relationships (SAR), 30 more derivatives of the original hits were
tested. The three most potent hits, 12, 22, and 15, had IC50 values of 240 nM, 1 μM,
and 1.5 μM, respectively. All but 1 of the 13 identified inhibitors
were selective over 17β-HSD1, the enzyme catalyzing conversion
of estrone into estradiol. Three of the new, small, synthetic 17β-HSD2
inhibitors showed acceptable selectivity over other related HSDs,
and six of them did not affect other HSDs.