Title:Tacrine-based Multifunctional Agents in Alzheimer's Disease: An Old Story in Continuous Development§
VOLUME: 24 ISSUE: 32
Author(s):Andrea Milelli*, Angela De Simone, Nicole Ticchi, Huan H. Chen, Nibal Betari, Vincenza Andrisano and Vincenzo Tumiatti
Affiliation:Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Corso d'Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Corso d'Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Corso d'Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Corso d'Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Corso d'Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Corso d'Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum-University of Bologna, Corso d'Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini
Keywords:Neurodegenerative diseases, Alzheimer's disease, tacrine, tacrine hybrids, dual binding acetylcholinesterase
inhibitors, acetylcholinesterase inhibitors.
Abstract:Background: The design of multifunctional agents represents one of the most active
research field in medicinal chemistry. In particular, tacrine, a well known Acetylcholinesterase
inhibitor, is one of the most used starting point to develop multifunctional ligands and hundreds
of papers report about these new agents. This is the third review of a series concerning tacrinebased
multifunctional ligands; in particular, in the present, we will summarize and discuss the
most intriguing examples of tacrine-based multifunctional agents published since 2013 until
2016.
Methods: We analyzed the bibliographic databases for peer-reviewed publications concerning
tacrine-based multifunctional agents possessing biological actions that go beyond the simple
“cholinergic” blockage. These papers have been subdivided according to their biological activities.
Since this is the third review of a series, we took into considerations only the papers appeared
since 2013 until 2016.
Results: In this review, we have analyzed more than 33 papers. All the reported compounds retain
good inhibitory activity towards acetyl- and butyryl-cholinesterase. The other biological activities
concern mostly inhibition of a) β-amyloid aggregation, b) β-secretase, c) monoamino oxidases,
modulation of τ and ROS and metal chelation.
Conclusion: The analysis of the current literature reported in this review confirm the importance
of tacrine as scaffold to develop multifunctional agents potentially usefull to contrast Alzheimer's
disease. Furthermore, the compounds herein reported showed very intriguing biological
activities that could be used as starting point to develop new compounds even more interesting
and, hopefully, clinically usefull to contrast Alzheimer's Disease.
