Novel Bivalent Ligands for D2/D3 Dopamine Receptors: Significant Cooperative Gain in D2 Affinity and Potency

This report describes development of a series of novel bivalent molecules with a pharmacophore derived from the D2/D3 agonist 5-OH-DPAT. The spacer length in the bivalent compounds had a pronounced influence on affinity for D2 receptors. A 23-fold increase of D2 affinity was observed at a spacer length of 9 or 10 (compounds <b>11d</b> and <b>14b</b>) as compared to monovalent 5-OH-DPAT (<i>K</i>_i; 2.5 and 2.0 vs 59 nM for <b>11d</b> and <b>14b</b> vs 5-OH-DPAT, respectively). The functional potency of <b>11d</b> and <b>14b</b> indicated a 24- and 94-fold increase in potency at the D2 receptor as compared to 5-OH-DPAT (EC₅₀; 1.7 and 0.44 vs 41 nM for <b>11d</b> and <b>14b</b> vs 5-OH-DPAT, respectively). These are the most potent bivalent agonists for the D2 receptor known to date. This synergism is consonant with cooperative interaction at the two orthosteric binding sites in the homodimeric receptor