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ECHA InfoCard | 100.071.272 |
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Formula | C22H22FN3O2S |
Molar mass | 411.50 g·mol−1 |
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Altanserin is a compound that binds to the 5-HT2A receptor (5-Hydroxytryptamine (serotonin) 2A receptor). Labeled with the isotope fluorine-18 it is used as a radioligand in positron emission tomography (PET) studies of the brain, i.e., studies of the 5-HT2A neuroreceptors. Besides human neuroimaging studies altanserin has also been used in the study of rats. [1] [2]
An alternative for PET imaging the 5-HT2A receptor is the [ 11C ] volinanserin (MDL-100,907) radioligand. 18F-altanserin and 3H-volinanserin have shown very comparable binding. [3] Both altanserin and MDL 100,907 are 5-HT2A receptor antagonists. [3] [18F]-setoperone can also be used in PET.
An alternative SPECT radioligand is the [123I]-5-I-R91150 receptor antagonist. [4]
A rapid chemical synthesis of fluorine-18 and H-2 dual-labeled altanserin has been described. [5]
Other ligands for other parts of the serotonin system used in PET studies are, e.g., DASB, ketanserin, and WAY-100635.
As of 2007 [update] altanserin is probably not used in clinical routine. However, there have been performed several research-based neuroimaging studies with the compound in humans since the 1990s. [6] [7] Some of these studies have considered methodogical issues such as the reproducibility of the method [8] [9] or whether to use constant infusion [10] or bolus-infusion [11] delivery of altanserin. Other studies have compared altanserin binding to subject variables such as age, personality trait and neuropsychiatric disorder.
The altanserin PET scan shows high binding in neocortex. The cerebellum is often regarded as a region with no specific 5-HT2A binding and the brain region is used as a reference in some studies, even though an autoradiography study has found nonnegligible levels of 5-HT2A binding in the human cerebellum, [12] and another type of study have observed strong immunoreaction against 5-HT2A receptor protein in rat Purkinje cells. [13]
In the table below is an overview of the results of altanserin binding seen in human PET-studies. A consistent finding across altanserin studies has been that the binding decreases with age. This is in line with in vitro studies of the 5-HT2A receptor, [14] as well as PET studies with other radioligands that binds to the receptor. [15]
The result for recovered bulimia-type anorexia nervosa [16] is in line with a SPECT study of anorexia nervosa patients, that found a decrease in frontal, occipital and parietal cortices. [4] The results of PET studies of the 5-HT2A in depression has been mixed. [17]
Altanserin binding has also been examine in twins, where one study showed higher correlation between monozygotic twin pairs than between dizygotic twin pairs, giving evidence that the binding is "strongly genetically determined". [18]
The reaction of 4-(4-fluorobenzoyl)piperidine [56346-57-7] (1) with 2-bromoethylamine [107-09-5] gives [1-(2-aminoethyl)piperidin-4-yl]-(4-fluorophenyl)methanone [83763-22-8] (2). The reaction of the terminal amino group with thiophosgene [463-71-8] leads to the corresponding isothiocyanate derivative, 4-fluorophenyl 1-(2-isothiocyanatoethyl)piperidin-4-yl ketone [84946-22-5] (3). Upon reaction of this reactive intermediate with ethyl anthranilate [87-25-2] (4), the transient addition product might be expected to be initially formed (5'). An intramolecular lactamization to the heterocyclic ring then occurs giving altanserin (6).
A radioligand is a radioactive biochemical substance, in particular, a ligand that is radiolabeled. Radioligands are used for diagnosis or for research-oriented study of the receptor systems of the body, and for anti-cancer radioligand therapy.
5-HT receptors, 5-hydroxytryptamine receptors, or serotonin receptors, are a group of G protein-coupled receptor and ligand-gated ion channels found in the central and peripheral nervous systems. They mediate both excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission. The serotonin receptors are activated by the neurotransmitter serotonin, which acts as their natural ligand.
Ketanserin (INN, USAN, BAN) (brand name Sufrexal; former developmental code name R41468) is a drug used clinically as an antihypertensive agent and in scientific research to study the serotonergic system; specifically, the 5-HT2 receptor family. It was discovered at Janssen Pharmaceutica in 1980. It is not available in the United States.
Pindolol, sold under the brand name Visken among others, is a nonselective beta blocker which is used in the treatment of hypertension. It is also an antagonist of the serotonin 5-HT1A receptor, preferentially blocking inhibitory 5-HT1A autoreceptors, and has been researched as an add-on therapy to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in the treatment of depression.
The 5-HT2A receptor is a subtype of the 5-HT2 receptor that belongs to the serotonin receptor family and is a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR). The 5-HT2A receptor is a cell surface receptor, but has several intracellular locations. 5-HT is short for 5-hydroxy-tryptamine or serotonin. This is the main excitatory receptor subtype among the GPCRs for serotonin, although 5-HT2A may also have an inhibitory effect on certain areas such as the visual cortex and the orbitofrontal cortex. This receptor was first noted for its importance as a target of serotonergic psychedelic drugs such as LSD and psilocybin mushrooms. Later it came back to prominence because it was also found to be mediating, at least partly, the action of many antipsychotic drugs, especially the atypical ones.
5-Hydroxytryptamine receptor 4 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the HTR4 gene.
The serotonin 1A receptor is a subtype of serotonin receptors, or 5-HT receptors, that binds serotonin, also known as 5-HT, a neurotransmitter. 5-HT1A is expressed in the brain, spleen, and neonatal kidney. It is a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), coupled to the Gi protein, and its activation in the brain mediates hyperpolarisation and reduction of firing rate of the postsynaptic neuron. In humans, the serotonin 1A receptor is encoded by the HTR1A gene.
DASB, also known as 3-amino-4-(2-dimethylaminomethylphenylsulfanyl)-benzonitrile, is a compound that binds to the serotonin transporter. Labeled with carbon-11 — a radioactive isotope — it has been used as a radioligand in neuroimaging with positron emission tomography (PET) since around year 2000. In this context it is regarded as one of the superior radioligands for PET study of the serotonin transporter in the brain, since it has high selectivity for the serotonin transporter.
WAY-100635 is a piperazine drug and research chemical widely used in scientific studies. It was originally believed to act as a selective 5-HT1A receptor antagonist, but subsequent research showed that it also acts as potent full agonist at the D4 receptor. It is sometimes referred to as a silent antagonist at the former receptor. It is closely related to WAY-100135.
Nisoxetine, originally synthesized in the Lilly research laboratories during the early 1970s, is a potent and selective inhibitor for the reuptake of norepinephrine (noradrenaline) into synapses. It currently has no clinical applications in humans, although it was originally researched as an antidepressant. Nisoxetine is now widely used in scientific research as a standard selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. It has been used to research obesity and energy balance, and exerts some local analgesia effects.
rs6295, also called C(-1019)G, is a gene variation—a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)—in the HTR1A gene. It is one of the most investigated SNPs of its gene. The C-allele is the most prevalent with 0.675 against the G-allele with 0.325 among Caucasian.
Setoperone is a compound that is a ligand to the 5-HT2A receptor. It can be radiolabeled with the radioisotope fluorine-18 and used as a radioligand with positron emission tomography (PET). Several research studies have used the radiolabeled setoperone in neuroimaging for the studying neuropsychiatric disorders, such as depression or schizophrenia.
McN5652 is a molecule that can be radiolabeled and then used as a radioligand in positron emission tomography (PET) studies. The [11C]-(+)-McN5652 enantiomer binds to the serotonin transporter. The radioligand is used for molecular neuroimaging and for imaging of the lungs.
5-I-R91150 is a compound that acts as a potent and selective antagonist of 5-HT2A receptors. Its main application is as its iodine-123 radiolabeled form, in which it can be used in SPECT scanning in human neuroimaging studies, to examine the distribution of the 5-HT2A receptor subtype in the brain, e.g. with respect to sex and age and in adults with Asperger syndrome or Alzheimer's disease.
MPPF, with the full name 2'-methoxyphenyl-(N-2'-pyridinyl)-p-fluoro-benzamidoethyipiperazine, is a compound that binds to the serotonin-1A receptor. Labeled with fluorine-18 it has been used as a radioligand with positron emission tomography. It has, e.g., been used to examine the difference in neuroreceptor binding in the human brain across sex and age.
Volinanserin (INN) is a highly selective 5-HT2A receptor antagonist that is frequently used in scientific research to investigate the function of the 5-HT2A receptor. It was also tested in clinical trials as a potential antipsychotic, antidepressant, and treatment for insomnia but was never marketed.
25B-NBOMe is a derivative of the phenethylamine psychedelic 2C-B, discovered in 2004 by Ralf Heim at the Free University of Berlin. It acts as a potent full agonist for the 5HT2A receptor. Anecdotal reports from users suggest 25B-NBOMe to be an active hallucinogen at a dose of as little as 250–500 µg, making it a similar potency to other phenethylamine derived hallucinogens such as Bromo-DragonFLY. Duration of effects lasts about 12–16 hours, although the parent compound is rapidly cleared from the blood when used in the radiolabeled form in tracer doses. Recently, Custodio et al (2019) evaluated the potential involvement of dysregulated dopaminergic system, neuroadaptation, and brain wave changes which may contribute to the rewarding and reinforcing properties of 25B-NBOMe in rodents.
Mefway is a serotonin 5-HT1A receptor antagonist used in medical research, usually in the form of mefway (18F) as a positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracer.
25CN-NBOH is a compound indirectly derived from the phenethylamine series of hallucinogens, which was discovered in 2014 at the University of Copenhagen. This compound is notable as one of the most selective agonist ligands for the 5-HT2A receptor yet discovered, with a pKi of 8.88 at the human 5-HT2A receptor and with 100x selectivity for 5-HT2A over 5-HT2C, and 46x selectivity for 5-HT2A over 5-HT2B. A tritiated version of 25CN-NBOH has also been accessed and used for more detailed investigations of the binding to 5-HT2 receptors and autoradiography.
F-11,461 is a drug that acts as an agonist of the 5-HT1A receptor (Ki = 1.36 nM) that has been used as a radioligand in PET studies. It possesses modest affinity for the 5-HT7 (Ki = 9.1 nM) and D4 (Ki = 8.5 nM) receptors, although the interaction of F-11,461 with these receptors is not detectable with PET due to their relative scarcity in the brain.