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The cardiotonic drug milrinone (1,6-dihydro-2-methyl-6-oxo-[3,4'-bipyridine]-5-carbonitrile) is superior to its analogue amrinone (5-amino-[3,4'-bipyridin]-6(1H)-one) by virtue of its greater potency and reduced side effect profile. We confirmed initial reports on the potencies of milrinone and amrinone and found that after intravenous administration to phenobarbital anesthetized dogs, the drugs had cumulative inotropic ED50's of 37 and 1891 micrograms/kg, respectively; relative effects on heart rate and blood pressure were comparable. There are two structural differences between amrinone and milrinone: (1) milrinone has a pyridone 2-methyl substituent and (2) the pyridone 5-amino substituent of amrinone is replaced with a nitrile in milrinone. We confirmed structure-activity studies that indicated that the 2-methyl substituent appears to be primarily responsible for the dramatic difference in the potencies of amrinone and milrinone. A plausible explanation for the effect of the methyl substituent is an altered molecular topology resulting from its steric interaction with the 3',5'-hydrogen atoms. Consequently, we probed the three-dimensional structures of these two compounds by X-ray crystallography. The dihedral angle between the planes formed by the two aromatic rings of amrinone was 1.3 degrees. In marked contrast, the corresponding angle for milrinone was 52.2 degrees. Moreover, 1H NMR studies revealed conformational differences in solution. Whereas the 2-methyl substituent undoubtedly produces some electronic and hydrophobic perturbations in the bipyridine cardiotonic series, the most significant effect, from a global viewpoint, is the altered molecular topology.

A representative series of N-substituted derivatives of the morphine-based trans-4a-aryldecahydroisoquinoline were synthesized and evaluated for opioid analgesic activities. Compounds with potent analgesic activity and high affinities for the mu and kappa opioid receptors were discovered. The effect of varying the N-substituent in the trans-4a-aryldecahydroisoquinoline paralleled, to a certain extent, previous findings with other morphine part structures. Replacement of the N-methyl with a phenethyl group significantly increased analgesic potency. The N-cyclopropylmethyl analogue was found in rodents to have mixed agonist-antagonist properties; however, its antagonist activity was far weaker than those reported for the N-(cyclopropylmethyl)morphinan and -benzomorphan derivatives. Resolution of the stereoisomers and determination of their absolute configuration by X-ray crystallography showed that the opioid receptor effects were predominantly found with the 4aR,8aR isomer, the same relative absolute configuration of morphine. Unexpectedly, the 4aR,8aR N-cyclopropylmethyl analogue (compound 30), which in rodents had mixed agonist-antagonist properties similar to those of pentazocine, was found in rhesus monkeys to behave as a full morphine-like agonist.

A synthetic precursor to a potent dopaminergic agonist, (RS)-4-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)indan, has been resolved by classical recrystallization procedures, and the absolute configurations of the enantiomers have been established by X-ray crystallographic analysis. The enantiomers were converted by literature procedures into (R)- and (S)-1. (R)-1 was approximately 100 times as potent as (S)-1 in an assay for dopamine agonist effect in the isolated cat atrium.

A58365A and A58365B, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors isolated from the culture filtrate of Streptomyces chromofuscus NRRL 15098, are homologous compounds of molecular formulas C12H13NO6 and C13H15NO6. The molecular similarities of the two inhibitors were established by comparison of their 1H NMR, 13C NMR, and UV spectra. Catalytic hydrogenation of A58365A led to a tetrahydro-deoxy derivative, C12H17NO5; extensive 1H NMR decoupling studies at 360 MHz allowed all the non-exchangeable protons of the derivative to be connected in a continuous substructure. This fragment was combined with information from other spectroscopic methods to suggest the structures for A58365A (1) and A58365B (2); the conclusions were confirmed by an X-ray crystallographic analysis of A58365A-dimethyl ester.

A series of 7 beta-[2-(5-aminooxadiazol-3-yl)-2-Z-methoximinoacetamido] -3-cephem-4-carboxylic acids (7a-g) were synthesized and evaluated microbiologically Although somewhat less active than cefotaxime 7a-g showed good antimicrobial activity against a wide variety of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The beta-lactamase stability of 7a and 7f was also discussed.

Fluoxetine, a selective inhibitor of serotonin uptake, is clinically useful in treating depression and may be useful for management of a variety of other psychiatric and metabolic derangements. Using X-ray crystallography, we have determined the three-dimensional structure of fluoxetine hydrochloride. A total of 2394 unique reflections were measured, and full-matrix least-squares refinement of all non-hydrogen coordinates and thermal parameters gave a final discrepancy index of 0.074 for 1759 observed reflections. In the solid state, the planes defined by the two aromatic rings are skewed, precluding the possibility of intramolecular ring-ring interactions. The methylene units of the methylpropanamine moiety adopt the anticipated conformational relationships to minimize torsional strain. An exact antiperiplanar relationship exists between N11 and C3; the N11-C1-C2-C3 dihedral angle is -180 degrees. The C1-C2-C3-O4 dihedral angle is 60.6 degrees, indicating that the propanamine side-chain folds toward the phenoxy moiety rather than adopting a fully extended conformation. This folded three-dimensional relationship may be necessary for high-affinity interaction with the serotonin-uptake carrier and confers considerable structural homology between this portion of fluoxetine and the phenylcyclohexylamine substructure of sertraline and EXP-561. However, the nature of substituents on the phenoxy portion of fluoxetine is also critical in determining potency and selectivity in this series of compounds.

The cardiotonic 1,3-dihydro-3,3-dimethyl-5-(1,4,5,6-tetrahydro-6-oxo-3- pyridazinyl)-2H-indol-2-one (1, LY195115) is a potent, competitive inhibitor (Ki = 80 nM) of sarcoplasmic reticulum derived phosphodiesterase (SR-PDE). Moreover, the compound is a potent positive inotrope both in vitro and in vivo. To assist further cardiotonic drug-design studies, we have mapped the three-dimensional structure of 1 using X-ray crystallography. From a global viewpoint, this drug was essentially planar, but two small regions of nonplanarity were apparent. These involved the geminal methyl substituents in the indol-2-one moiety and the C5' methylene unit of the dihydropyridazinone ring. Because of our previous studies involving the bipyridine cardiotonics amrinone and milrinone, the conformational relationship between the plane of the phenyl ring and the horizontal symmetry plane defined by N2', C3', and C4' of 1 was of particular interest. The C6-C5-C3'-C4' dihedral angle was -2.7 degrees, whereas the C6-C5-C3'-N2' dihedral angle was 174.6 degrees. Therefore the two rings maintain a high degree of coplanarity. Compound 4, the congener of 1 possessing a completely unsaturated pyridazinone ring was also studied. In terms of inotropic activity, this compound, devoid of any puckering in the pyridazinone moiety, was equipotent with 1. Methyl substitution at the 4-position of the dihydropyridazinone and pyridazinone rings provided disparate results. Compound 2, the 4-methyl analogue of 1, was 2-fold more potent than 1, and the methyl substituent probably caused only minor perturbations in overall molecular topology. However 5, the 4-methyl analogue of the pyridazinone 4, was 4.4-fold less active than 4, perhaps as a result of methyl-induced molecular nonplanarity.