Zopolrestat

Alond,Pfizer

Antidiabetic; inhibitor (aldose reductase).

A mixture of 2-methyl-5-trifluoromethylbenzothiazole (1 mole-equivalent), N- bromosuccinimide (1 mole-equivalent), carbon tetrachloride (700 ml) and a catalytic amount of benzoyl peroxide (0.2 g) was refluxed under irradiation by an UV lamp for 14 hours. The reaction mixture was cooled to room temperature, filtered to remove the precipitated succinimide and the filtrate was evaporated to dryness. The resulting solid was chromatographed over silica gel to obtain the 2-bromomethyl-5-trifluoromethyl-benzothiazole. To a mixture of ethyl 4-oxo-3H-phthalazin-1-ylacetate (1 mole-equivalent) and sodium hydride (50% w/w dispersion in mineral oil) in dimethylformamide (150 ml) was added 2-bromomethyl-5-trifluoromethylbenzothiazole (1 mole- equivalent) and the resulting mixture stirred at room temperature for 1 hour. This reaction mixture was poured over ice-water (500 ml); sufficient 10% HCl was added to adjust the pH to about 4.0 and the precipitated crude solid was collected. This was chromatographed over silica gel to obtain the ethyl[4-oxo- 3-(5-trifluoromethylbenzothiazol-2-yl)-3,4-dihydro-phthalazin-1-yl]acetate; MP: 134°-136°C. A solution of methyl or ethyl [4-oxo-3-(5-trifluoromethylbenzothiazol-2-yl)- 3,4-dihydrophthalazin-1-yl]acetate (1 mole-equivalent) in methanol (50 ml)

Aldose reductase inhibitor

Zopolrest at is an inhibitor of Aldose Reductase. AR family members AKR1B1 and AKR1B10 have additionally been shown to play roles in inflammation and cancer.