Wichur_2019_Eur.J.Med.Chem_187_111916

Complex pathomechanism of Alzheimer's disease (AD) prompts researchers to develop multifunctional molecules in order to find effective therapy against AD. We designed and synthesized novel multifunctional ligands for which we assessed their activities towards butyrylcholinesterase, beta secretase, amyloid beta (Abeta) and tau protein aggregation as well as antioxidant and metal-chelating properties. All compounds showed dual anti-aggregating properties towards Abeta and tau protein in the in cellulo assay in Escherichia coli. Of particular interest are compounds 24b and 25b, which efficiently inhibit aggregation of Abeta and tau protein at 10 muM (24b: 45% for Abeta, 53% for tau; 25b: 49% for Abeta, 54% for tau). They display free radical scavenging capacity and antioxidant activity in ABTS and FRAP assays, respectively, and selectively chelate copper ions. Compounds 24b and 25b are also the most potent inhibitors of BuChE with IC50 of 2.39 muM and 1.94 muM, respectively. Promising in vitro activities of the presented multifunctional ligands as well as their original scaffold are a very interesting starting point for further research towards effective anti-AD treatment.