ABSTRACT:Metabolic aromatization of xenobiotics is an unusual reaction with some documented examples. For instance, the oxidation of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine to the neurotoxic pyridinium ion metabolite 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium by monoamine oxidase (MAO) B in the brain has been of interest to a number of investigators. It has also been reported that although the aromatization of N-methyl-tetrahydroisoquinoline occurs with MAO B, the metabolism does not proceed for its isomer, N-methyltetrahydroquinoline, by the same enzyme. The aromatization of an N-alkyl-tetrahydroquinoline substructure was identified during in vitro metabolite profiling of compound A, which was designed as a potent renin inhibitor for the treatment of hypertension. The Nalkylquinolinium metabolite of compound A was identified by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry of human liver microsomal incubates and proton NMR of the isolated metabolite.Further in vitro metabolism studies with a commercially available chemical (compound B), containing the same substructure, also generated an N-alkylquinolinium metabolite. In vitro cytochrome P450 (P450) reaction phenotyping of compound A revealed that the metabolism was catalyzed exclusively by CYP3A4. Although compound B was a substrate for several P450 isoforms, its quinolinium metabolite was also generated predominantly by CYP3A4. Neither compound A nor compound B was a substrate of MAOs. The quinolinium metabolites were readily produced by horseradish peroxidase, suggesting that aromatization of the N-alkyltetrahydroquinoline could occur via a mechanism involving single electron transfer from nitrogen. Although dihydro intermediates from the tetrahydroquinoline substrates were not observed in the formation of quinolinium metabolites, cyanide trapping results indicated the occurrence of iminium intermediates.Compound A (Scheme 1) was a lead compound, consisting of a novel nonpeptidic ketopiperazine-based scaffold, that was designed as a potent renin inhibitor for the treatment of hypertension (Holsworth et al., 2005(Holsworth et al., , 2006. The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) plays a key role in blood pressure regulation. Pharmacological blockade of the RAS cascade is usually achieved with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers. Renin inhibition has been sought for decades, as it would inhibit the initial and rate-limiting step of the RAS and hence might offer a therapeutic profile distinct from angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers. Recent progress shows new potential for the treatment of hypertension by renin inhibition (Fisher and Hollenberg, 2005;Wood et al., 2005).During in vitro metabolite profile studies on compound A, in support of lead optimization, an unusual metabolite was observed. It appeared to be derived from aromatization of the N-alkyltetrahydroquinoline ring, yielding an N-alkylquinolinium ion as a major metabolite in human liver microsomes. Similar metabolic oxidation of 1-methyl-4...