Zanaletti_2012_J.Med.Chem_55_4806

Alpha-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (alpha7 nAChR) are implicated in the modulation of many cognitive functions such as attention, working memory, and episodic memory. For this reason, alpha7 nAChR agonists represent promising therapeutic candidates for the treatment of cognitive impairment associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and schizophrenia. A medicinal chemistry effort, around our previously reported chemical series, permitted the discovery of a novel class of alpha7 nAChR agonists with improved selectivity, in particular against the alpha3 receptor subtype and better ADME profile. The exploration of this series led to the identification of 5-(4-acetyl[1,4]diazepan-1-yl)pentanoic acid [5-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1H-pyrazol-3-yl] amide (25, SEN15924, WAY-361789), a novel, full agonist of the alpha7 nAChR that was evaluated in vitro and in vivo. Compound 25 proved to be potent and selective, and it demonstrated a fair pharmacokinetic profile accompanied by efficacy in rodent behavioral cognition models (novel object recognition and auditory sensory gating).