Structure-activity relationship of adenosine 5'-diphosphoribose at the transient receptor potential melastatin 2 (TRPM2) channel: rational design of antagonists

Adenosine 5'-diphosphoribose (ADPR) activates TRPM2, a CA(2+), Na(+), and K(+) permeable cation channel. Activation is induced by ADPR binding to the cytosolic C-terminal NudT9-homology domain. To generate the first structure-activity relationship, systematically modified ADPR analogues were designed, synthesized, and evaluated as antagonists using patch-clamp experiments in HEK293 cells overexpressing human TRPM2. Compounds with a purine C8 substituent show antagonist activity, and an 8-phenyl substitution (8-Ph-ADPR, 5) is very effective. Modification of the terminal ribose results in a weak antagonist, whereas its removal abolishes activity. An antagonist based upon a hybrid structure, 8-phenyl-2'-deoxy-ADPR (86, IC50 = 3 μM), is more potent than 8-Ph-ADPR (5). Initial bioisosteric replacement of the pyrophosphate linkage abolishes activity, but replacement of the pyrophosphate and the terminal ribose by a sulfamate-based group leads to a weak antagonist, a lead to more drug-like analogues. 8-Ph-ADPR (5) inhibits CA(2+) signalling and chemotaxis in human neutrophils, illustrating the potential for pharmacological intervention at TRPM2.