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In recent years, various biological processes have been found to be regulated by miRNA-mediated gene silencing. A small molecule that modulate the miRNA pathway will provide the biological tool for elucidating mechanisms of miRNA-mediated gene regulation, and can be the drug lead for miRNA related diseases. In this study, we demonstrated that an aminoalkoxy-substituted thioxanthone derivative interferes Dicer-mediated processing of pre-miRNA. Information about the interaction between these xanthone derivatives and pre-miRNAs will enable us to design and develop new small molecule-based inhibitors for miRNA pathway., (Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

An investigation of the structure-affinity relationships for the binding of thioxanthene-related structures indicates that an intact thioxanthene ring is not required for binding at sigma(1) receptors, and that with the appropriate structural modifications, affinity can be enhanced to the subnanomolar level. Certain of the analogs displayed sigma(1)-fold selectivity for sigma(1) versus sigma(2) receptors.