Design, Structure-Activity Relationships, and In Vivo Evaluation of Potent and Brain-Penetrant Imidazo[1,2- b ]pyridazines as Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3 beta (GSK-3 beta ) Inhibitors.
Hartz, R.A., Ahuja, V.T., Sivaprakasam, P., Xiao, H., Krause, C.M., Clarke, W.J., Kish, K., Lewis, H., Szapiel, N., Ravirala, R., Mutalik, S., Nakmode, D., Shah, D., Burton, C.R., Macor, J.E., Dubowchik, G.M.(2023) J Med Chem 66: 4231-4252
- PubMed: 36950863 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.3c00133
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
8DJC, 8DJE - PubMed Abstract: 
Glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) is a serine/threonine kinase that regulates numerous cellular processes, including metabolism, proliferation, and cell survival. Due to its multifaceted role, GSK-3 has been implicated in a variety of diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and mood disorders. GSK-3β has been linked to the formation of the neurofibrillary tangles associated with Alzheimer's disease that arise from the hyperphosphorylation of tau protein. The design and synthesis of a series of imidazo[1,2- b ]pyridazine derivatives that were evaluated as GSK-3β inhibitors are described herein. Structure-activity relationship studies led to the identification of potent GSK-3β inhibitors. In vivo studies with 47 in a triple-transgenic mouse Alzheimer's disease model showed that this compound is a brain-penetrant, orally bioavailable GSK-3β inhibitor that significantly lowered levels of phosphorylated tau.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Biocon-Bristol Myers Squibb Research and Development Center, Biocon Park, Plot No. 2 & 3, Bommasandra Phase IV, Jigani Link Road, Bangalore 560099, India.