Favorable Preclinical Pharmacological Profile of a Novel Antimalarial Pyrrolizidinylmethyl Derivative of 4-amino-7-chloroquinoline with Potent In Vitro and In Vivo Activities

• Published in: Biomolecules (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 13; no. 5; p. 836
• Main Authors: Basilico, Nicoletta, Parapini, Silvia, D'Alessandro, Sarah, Misiano, Paola, Romeo, Sergio, Dondio, Giulio, Yardley, Vanessa, Vivas, Livia, Nasser, Shereen, Rénia, Laurent, Russell, Bruce M, Suwanarusk, Rossarin, Nosten, François, Sparatore, Anna, Taramelli, Donatella
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 14.05.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: 4-aminoquinolines; Alkaloids; Amodiaquine; Animal models; Animals; Antimalarials; Antimalarials - therapeutic use; Artemisinin; Artemisinins - pharmacology; Bioavailability; Chemical properties; Chloroquine; Chloroquine - pharmacology; Dogs; drug discovery; Drug resistance; Drug resistance in microorganisms; Drugs; Health aspects; Ions; Malaria; Malaria - drug therapy; Malaria - parasitology; Malaria, Falciparum - drug therapy; Metabolism; Parasite resistance; Parasites; Pharmacology, Experimental; Plasmodium falciparum; Quinolines; Quinolines - pharmacology; Rats; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Toxicity; United Kingdom; drug discovery; malaria; 4-aminoquinolines
• ISSN: 2218-273X; 2218-273X
• DOI: 10.3390/biom13050836

The 4-aminoquinoline drugs, such as chloroquine (CQ), amodiaquine or piperaquine, are still commonly used for malaria treatment, either alone (CQ) or in combination with artemisinin derivatives. We previously described the excellent in vitro activity of a novel pyrrolizidinylmethyl derivative of 4-amino-7-chloroquinoline, named against drug-resistant parasites. Here, we report the optimized and safer synthesis of , now suitable for a scale-up, and its additional in vitro and in vivo characterization. is active against a panel of and field isolates, either alone or in combination with artemisinin derivatives. In vivo is orally active in the and models of rodent malaria with efficacy comparable, or better, than that of CQ and of other quinolines under development. The in vivo and in vitro ADME-Tox studies indicate that possesses a very good pre-clinical developability profile associated with an excellent oral bioavailability, and low toxicity in non-formal preclinical studies on rats, dogs, and non-human primates (NHP). In conclusion, the pharmacological profile of is in line with those obtained with CQ or the other quinolines in use and seems to possess all the requirements for a developmental candidate.