Generation of a potent & selective series of IRAK4 inhibitors based on a structure based, hybridization approach. (PubMed, Bioorg Med Chem)
In this article, we describe the development of a highly potent and selective IRAK4 lead compound 5e, starting from Astellas AS2444697 (1a). The work includes identification of the pyrazole-pyridine substituent in compound 1g, binding towards the gatekeeper region of IRAK4, followed by a structure-guided scaffold hybridization that led to 5a. Subsequent optimization of substituents of the indazole scaffold yielded 5e, which exhibits a 10-fold improvement in IRAK4 cell potency and higher off-target selectivity compared to AS244697 (1a).