A phosphodiesterase inhibitor is a drug that blocks one or more of the five subtypes of the enzyme phosphodiesterase (PDE), thereby preventing the inactivation of the intracellular second messengers, cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) by the respective PDE subtype(s). The ubiquitous presence of this enzyme means that non-specific inhibitors have a wide range of actions, the actions in the heart, and lungs being some of the first to find a therapeutic use.
Adenosine (symbol A) is an organic compound that occurs widely in nature in the form of diverse derivatives. The molecule consists of an adenine attached to a ribose via a β-N9-glycosidic bond. Adenosine is one of the four nucleoside building blocks of RNA (and its derivative deoxyadenosine is a building block of DNA), which are essential for all life. Its derivatives include the energy carriers adenosine mono-, di-, and triphosphate, also known as AMP/ADP/ATP. Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) is pervasive in signal transduction. Adenosine is used as an intravenous medication for some cardiac arrhythmias.
The adenosine receptors (or P1 receptors) are a class of purinergic G protein-coupled receptors with adenosine as the endogenous ligand. There are four known types of adenosine receptors in humans: A1, A2A, A2B and A3; each is encoded by a different gene.
Aminophylline is a compound of the bronchodilator theophylline with ethylenediamine in 2:1 ratio. The ethylenediamine improves solubility, and the aminophylline is usually found as a dihydrate.
The Biginelli reaction is a multiple-component chemical reaction that creates 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones 4 from ethyl acetoacetate 1, an aryl aldehyde, and urea 3. It is named for the Italian chemist Pietro Biginelli.
The adenosine A1 receptor is one member of the adenosine receptor group of G protein-coupled receptors with adenosine as endogenous ligand.
Reversine, or 2-(4-morpholinoanilino)-6-cyclohexylaminopurine, is a small molecule developed by the group of Peter G. Schultz, used for stem cell dedifferentiation.
IBMX (3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine), like other methylated xanthine derivatives, is both a:
- competitive non-selective phosphodiesterase inhibitor which raises intracellular cAMP, activates PKA, inhibits TNFα and leukotriene synthesis, and reduces inflammation and innate immunity, and
- nonselective adenosine receptor antagonist.
The adenosine A2A receptor, also known as ADORA2A, is an adenosine receptor, and also denotes the human gene encoding it.
The adenosine A3 receptor, also known as ADORA3, is an adenosine receptor, but also denotes the human gene encoding it.
G protein-coupled receptor 35 also known as GPR35 is a G protein-coupled receptor which in humans is encoded by the GPR35 gene. Heightened expression of GPR35 is found in immune and gastrointestinal tissues, including the crypts of Lieberkühn.
The adenosine A2B receptor, also known as ADORA2B, is a G-protein coupled adenosine receptor, and also denotes the human adenosine A2b receptor gene which encodes it.
8-Cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX, PD-116,948) is a drug which acts as a potent and selective antagonist for the adenosine A1 receptor. It has high selectivity for A1 over other adenosine receptor subtypes, but as with other xanthine derivatives DPCPX also acts as a phosphodiesterase inhibitor, and is almost as potent as rolipram at inhibiting PDE4. It has been used to study the function of the adenosine A1 receptor in animals, which has been found to be involved in several important functions such as regulation of breathing and activity in various regions of the brain, and DPCPX has also been shown to produce behavioural effects such as increasing the hallucinogen-appropriate responding produced by the 5-HT2A agonist DOI, and the dopamine release induced by MDMA, as well as having interactions with a range of anticonvulsant drugs.
SCH-58261 is a drug which acts as a potent and selective antagonist for the adenosine receptor A2A, with more than 50x selectivity for A2A over other adenosine receptors. It has been used to investigate the mechanism of action of caffeine, which is a mixed A1 / A2A antagonist, and has shown that the A2A receptor is primarily responsible for the stimulant and ergogenic effects of caffeine, but blockade of both A1 and A2A receptors is required to accurately replicate caffeine's effects in animals. SCH-58261 has also shown antidepressant, nootropic and neuroprotective effects in a variety of animal models, and has been investigated as a possible treatment for Parkinson's disease.
PSB-10 is a drug which acts as a selective antagonist for the adenosine A3 receptor (ki value at human A3 receptor is 0.44 nM), with high selectivity over the other three adenosine receptor subtypes (ki values at human A1, A2A and A2B receptors are 4.1, 3.3 and 30 μM). Further pharmacological experiments in a [35S]GTPγS binding assay using hA3-CHO-cells indicated that PSB-10 acts as an inverse agonist (IC50 = 4 nM). It has been shown to produce antiinflammatory effects in animal studies. Simple xanthine derivatives such as caffeine and DPCPX have generally low affinity for the A3 subtype and must be extended by expanding the ring system and adding an aromatic group to give high A3 affinity and selectivity. The affinity towards adenosine A3 subtype was measured against the radioligand PSB-11.
CGS-15943 is a drug which acts as a potent and reasonably selective antagonist for the adenosine receptors A1 and A2A, having a Ki of 3.3nM at A2A and 21nM at A1. It was one of the first adenosine receptor antagonists discovered that is not a xanthine derivative, instead being a triazoloquinazoline. Consequently, CGS-15943 has the advantage over most xanthine derivatives that it is not a phosphodiesterase inhibitor, and so has more a specific pharmacological effects profile. It produces similar effects to caffeine in animal studies, though with higher potency.
ATL-444 is a drug which acts as a potent and reasonably selective antagonist for the adenosine receptors A1 and A2A. It has been used to study the role of the adenosine receptor system in the reinforcing action of cocaine, as well as the development of some cancers.
Purinergic signalling is a form of extracellular signalling mediated by purine nucleotides and nucleosides such as adenosine and ATP. It involves the activation of purinergic receptors in the cell and/or in nearby cells, thereby regulating cellular functions.
An adenosine receptor antagonist is a drug which acts as an antagonist of one or more of the adenosine receptors. The best known are xanthines and their derivatives, but there are also non-xanthine representatives
Immune checkpoints are regulators of the immune system. These pathways are crucial for self-tolerance, which prevents the immune system from attacking cells indiscriminately. However, some cancers can protect themselves from attack by stimulating immune checkpoint targets.
