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The search of new drugs and targets to treat the pain is an intriguing challenge both for several companies and researchers from academia. In this context, since the modulation of the endocannabinoid system with the non selective phytocannabinoid Δ9-THC produces analgesia and potentiates opioid analgesia in animal models, CB2 ligands studies aimed to explore the involvement of endocannabinoid system in management of pain were started. Several selective CB2 receptor agonists exhibited analgesic activity in preclinical models of acute, inflammatory and neuropathic pain, therefore this class of modulators could be useful as analgesic agents for pain, migraine, inflammation and osteoarthritis. This review is an update of our previously manuscript "A survey of recent patents on CB2 agonists in the management of pain" and provides an overview of patents and advances in CB2 agonist studies in the treatment of pain.

The chemistry underlying how diazabicycloheptanes are assembled is described, subdivided according to chemical structure of two types, the 3,6 diazabicyclo[3.1.1]heptane and the 2,5-diazabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane ring system. Detailed information on myriad of activities of compounds derived from the two scaffolds are reported.

The therapeutic approach to AIDS is based on the combination of different drugs in the highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) regimen. These drugs have a wide variety of side effects, and some strains of HIV can develop resistance: for these reasons new anti-HIV drugs are needed. In the wide field of anti-HIV medicine this review covers different classes of drugs which inhibit viral entry: in particular the classification of main categories, their mode of action and some new candidates for AIDS therapy are contemplated. Also covered in this review are respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) fusion inhibitors.

A new series of 8-halogen-4,4a,5,6-tetrahydrothieno[2,3-h]cinnolinone-N2-alkanoic acids was prepared and tested for aldose reductase (ALR2) inhibitory activities. These compounds showed significant inhibitory activity against bovine lens ALR2, with the best compound 2e showing an IC(50) value of 31.4 microM. The presence of the C8-substituents here studied (Cl, Br) on the thienocinnolinone scaffold caused a decrease of the inhibitory potency by a factor of about 4 with respect to the unsubstituted parent compound, while the presence of a C8-methyl group, considered in a previous paper decreased the activity by a factor of about 2. Moreover, the length of the N2 alkanoic chain influences strongly the enzyme inhibitory activity. While most of the carboxylic acids ALR2 inhibitors are acetic acid derivatives, in the case of thienocinnolinone compounds, homologues higher than acetic acids showed to be more active.