A series of N-formyl-alpha-amino acid esters of beta-lactone derivatives structurally related to tetrahydrolipstatin (THL) and O-3841 were synthesized that inhibit human and murine diacylglycerol lipase (DAGL) activities. New ether lipid reporter compounds were developed for an in vitro assay to efficiently screen inhibitors of 1,2-diacyl-sn-glycerol hydrolysis and related lipase activities using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). A standardized thin layer chromatography (TLC) radioassay of diacylglycerol lipase activity utilizing the labeled endogenous substrate [1''-(14)C]1-stearoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycerol with phosphorimaging detection was used to quantify inhibition by following formation of the initial product [1''-(14)C]2-arachidonoylglycerol and further hydrolysis under the assay conditions to [1-(14)C]arachidonic acid.
Enzymes for the biosynthesis and degradation of the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2-AG) have been cloned and are the sn-1-selective-diacylglycerol lipases alpha and beta (DAGLalpha and beta) and the monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL), respectively. Here, we used membranes from COS cells over-expressing recombinant human DAGLalpha to screen new synthetic substances as DAGLalpha inhibitors, and cytosolic fractions from wild-type COS cells to look for MAGL inhibitors. DAGLalpha and MAGL activities were assessed by using sn-1-[14C]-oleoyl-2-arachidonoyl-glycerol and 2-[3H]-arachidonoylglycerol as substrates, respectively. We screened known compounds as well as new phosphonate derivatives of oleic acid and fluoro-phosphinoyl esters of different length. Apart from the general lipase inhibitor tetrahydrolipstatin (orlistat) (IC50 approximately 60 nM), the most potent inhibitors of DAGLalpha were O-3640 [octadec-9-enoic acid-1-(fluoro-methyl-phosphoryloxymethyl)-propylester] (IC50 = 500 nM), and O-3841 [octadec-9-enoic acid 1-methoxymethyl-2-(fluoro-methyl-phosphinoyloxy)-ethyl ester] (IC50 = 160 nM). Apart from being almost inactive on MAGL, these two compounds showed high selectivity over rat liver triacylglycerol lipase, rat N-acylphosphatidyl-ethanolamine-selective phospholipase D (involved in anandamide biosynthesis), rat fatty acid amide hydrolase and human recombinant cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors. Methylarachidonoyl-fluorophosphonate and the novel compound UP-101 [O-ethyl-O-p-nitro-phenyl oleylphosphonate] inhibited both DAGLalpha and MAGL with similar potencies (IC50 = 0.8-0.1 and 3.7-3.2 microM, respectively). Thus, we report the first potent and specific inhibitors of the biosynthesis of 2-AG that may be used as pharmacological tools to investigate the biological role of this endocannabinoid.
