%0 Journal Article
%T Discovery of Quinazoline and Quinoline-Based Small Molecules as Utrophin Upregulators via AhR Antagonism for the Treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
%A Ghosh S
%A Arshi MU
%A Ghosh S
%A Jash M
%A Sen S
%A Mamchaoui K
%A Bhattacharyya S
%A Rana NK
%A Ghosh S
%J J Med Chem
%V 67
%N 11
%D 2024 Jun 13
%M 38771158
%F 8.039
%R 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.4c00398
%X Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a fatal muscle-wasting disease caused by the absence of a dystrophin protein. Elevating utrophin, a dystrophin paralogue, offers an alternative therapeutic strategy for treating DMD, irrespective of the mutation type. Herein, we report the design and synthesis of novel quinazoline and quinoline-based small molecules as potent utrophin modulators screened via high throughput In-Cell ELISA in C2C12 cells. Remarkably, lead molecule SG-02, identified from a library of 70 molecules, upregulates utrophin 2.7-fold at 800 nM in a dose-dependent manner, marking the highest upregulation within the nanomolar range. SG-02's efficacy was further validated through DMD patient-derived cells, demonstrating a significant 2.3-fold utrophin expression. Mechanistically, SG-02 functions as an AhR antagonist, with excellent binding affinity (Kd = 41.68 nM). SG-02 also enhances myogenesis, as indicated by an increased MyHC expression. ADME evaluation supports SG-02's oral bioavailability. Overall, SG-02 holds promise for addressing the global DMD population.