Conformational Analysis of Sulfonylureas

술포닐 우레아 유도체들의 형태분석

To determine the optimal conformation of sulfonylureas, the correlation between conformation and hypoglycemic activity of the two sulfonylureas of tolbutamide and chlorpropamide as hypoglycemic agent was studied using an empirical potential function (ECEPP/2) and the hydration shell model in the unhydrated and hydrated states. The conformational energy was minimized from several starting conformations with possible torsion angles in each molecule. The conformational entropy change of each conformation was computed using a harmonic approximation. To understand the hydration effect on the conformation of the molecules in aqueous solution, the contribution of water-accessible volume of each group or atom in the lowest-free-energy conformation was calculated and compared each other. From comparison of the computed lowest-free-energy conformations of two sulfonylureas, it could be suggested that the hydration of sulfonylurea moiety is related to increase the hypoglycemic activity. From the calculation results, it was known that the conformational entropy is the major contribution to stabilize the low-free-energy conformations of two sulfonylureas in unhydrated state. Whereas, in hydrated state, the hydration free energy largely contributes to the total free energies of low-free-energy conformations of tolbutamide and conformational entropy contributes to stabilize the low-free-energy conformations of chlorpropamide. The torsion angles from phenyl ring to urea moiety of the low-free-energy conformations of the two sulfonylureas were shown the nearly regular trend. On the basis of these results, the conformation exhibiting the optimal hypoglycemic activity of sulfonylureas and the binding direction to pancreatic receptor site A could be predicted. Also, according to the side chain lengthening of urea moiety, tolbutamide showed various conformational change. Therefore, steric effect may be important factor in the interaction between sulfonylureas and the putative pancreatic receptor.