Synthesis of new mono and bis amides projected as potential histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors

In our ongoing efforts to discover new potent histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors as promising anticancer candidates, we designed and synthesized a small collection of 3-substituted amines possessing macro heterocyclic skeletons bearing variable-length tails. As a metal binder domain, all the compounds possess an amide function suitable for Zn2+ chelation in the enzyme active site. A combination of solution and solid phase techniques were employed to synthesize the compounds and, as the key synthetic step to obtain the rings, a ring closing metathesis (RCM) reaction was adopted. The putative affinity of the compounds for the histone deacetylase-like protein (HDLP) model receptor active site was explored through docking calculations, and we also report preliminary studies on their pharmacological properties.