Abstract
Inhibition of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO1) is an attractive immunotherapeutic approach for the treatment of a variety of cancers. Dysregulation of this enzyme has also been implicated in other disorders including Alzheimer's disease and arthritis. Herein, we report the structure-based design of two related series of molecules: N1-substituted 5-indoleimidazoles and N1-substituted 5-phenylimidazoles. The latter (and more potent) series was accessed through an unexpected rearrangement of an imine intermediate during a Van Leusen imidazole synthesis reaction. Evidence for the binding modes for both inhibitor series is supported by computational and structure-activity relationship studies.