Alsterpaullone is a derivative of kenpaullone , an ATP-competitive inhibitor of several cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) as well as glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β). With slightly improved potency over kenpaullone, alsterpaullone selectively inhibits Cdk1/cyclin B, Cdk2/cyclin A, Cdk2/cyclin E, Cdk5/p25, and GSK3α/β with IC50 values of 35, 15, 200, 40, and 4 nM, respectively. Alsterpaullone has been used to inhibit the cytosolic degradation of β-catenin to alter the canonical Wnt signaling pathway in primary axis patterning, to reduce tau phosphorylation in an effort to modify neuropathological events associated with Alzheimer’s disease, and to alter cell proliferation or protein expression in various diseases.
