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A series of 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-(l)-ribitol (DIR) derivatives carrying alkyl or functionalized alkyl groups were prepared and investigated as glycosidase inhibitors. These compounds were designed as simplified 4-epi-isofagomine (4-epi-IFG) mimics and were expected to behave as selective inhibitors of β-galactosidases. All compounds were indeed found to be highly selective for β-galactosidases versus α-glycosidases, as they generally did not inhibit coffee bean α-galactosidase or other α-glycosidases. Some compounds were also found to be inhibitors of almond β-glucosidase. The N-alkyl DIR derivatives were only modest inhibitors of bovine β-galactosidase, with IC50 values in the 30-700 μM range. Likewise, imino-L-ribitol substituted at the C1 position was found to be a weak inhibitor of this enzyme. In contrast, alkyl substitution at C5 resulted in enhanced β-galactosidase inhibitory activity by a factor of up to 1000, with at least six carbon atoms in the alkyl substituent. Remarkably, the 'pseudo-anomeric' configuration in this series does not appear to play a role. Human lysosomal β-galactosidase from leukocyte lysate was, however, poorly inhibited by all iminoribitol derivatives tested (IC50 values in the 100 μM range), while 4-epi-IFG was a good inhibitor of this enzyme. Two compounds were evaluated as pharmacological chaperones for a GM1-gangliosidosis cell line (R301Q mutation) and were found to enhance the mutant enzyme activity by factors up to 2.7-fold., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Graphical abstract Abstract (5a R)-5a- C -pentyl-4- epi -isofagomine 1 is a powerful inhibitor of lysosomal β-galactosidase and a remarkable chaperone for mutations associated with GM1-gangliosidosis and Morquio disease type B. We report herein an improved synthesis of this compound and analogs (5a- C -methyl, pentyl, nonyl and phenylethyl derivatives), and a crystal structure of a synthetic intermediate that confirms its configuration resulting from the addition of a Grignard reagent. These compounds were evaluated as glycosidase inhibitors and their potential as chaperones for mutant lysosomal galactosidases determined. Based on these results and on docking studies, the 5- C -pentyl derivative 1 was selected as the optimal structure for further investigations: this compound induces the maturation of mutated β-galactosidase in fibroblasts of a GM1-gangliosidosis patient and promote the decrease of keratan sulfate and oligosaccharide load in patient cells. Compound 1 is clearly capable of restoring β-galactosidase activity and of promoting maturation of the protein, which should result in significant clinical benefit. These properties strongly support the development of compound 1 for the treatment of GM1-gangliosidosis and Morquio disease type B patients harboring β-galactosidase mutations sensitive to pharmacological chaperoning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is about the identification, synthesis and initial biological characterization of derivatives of 4- epi -isofagomine as pharmacological chaperones (PC) for human lysosomal β-galactosidase. The two epimers of 4- epi -isofagomine carrying a pentyl group at C-5a, namely (5a R )- and (5a S )-5a- C -pentyl-4- epi -isofagomine, were prepared by an innovative procedure involving in the key step the addition of nitrohexane to a keto-pentopyranoside. Both epimers were evaluated as inhibitors of the human β-galactosidase: the (5a R )-stereoisomer (compound 1 ) was found to be a very potent inhibitor of the enzyme (IC 50 = 8 nM, 30× more potent than 4- epi -isofagomine at pH 7.3) with a high selectivity for this glycosidase whereas the (5a S ) epimer was a much weaker inhibitor. In addition, compound 1 showed a remarkable activity as a PC. It significantly enhanced the residual activity of mutant β-galactosidase in 15 patient cell lines out of 23, with enhancement factors greater than 3.5 in 10 cell lines and activity restoration up to 91% of normal. Altogether, these results indicated that (5a R )-5a- C -pentyl-4- epi -isofagomine constitutes a promising PC-based drug candidate for the treatment of GM1-gangliosidosis and Morquio disease type B. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]