STEROIDS POSSESSING NITROGEN ATOMS .V. SOME PHARMACOLOGICAL AND CHEMICO-PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF A NEW CLASS OF ACTIVE CORTICOIDS - [17ALPHA,16ALPHA-D]-OXAZOLINO-STEROIDS

The pharmacological data related to the neoglycogenetic and antinflammatory activity of a new series of [17α,16α-d]-oxazolino analogs of corticosteroids are reported. The substituent in the 2'-position of the oxazoline nucleus has a decisive influence in determining the activity, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Some activity-structure correlations are discussed and the mineral-corticoid activity of the 2'-methyloxazolino analogs of desoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA) compared with DOCA itself, has been examined for this purpose. The 2'-methyloxazoline ring potentiates the antiinflammatory and neoglycogenetic activity and inhibits or reduces the mineral-corticoid activity in the steroid examined. A peculiarity of some oxazolino-corticoids is their limited lipid-solubility (determined by the ether-water partition coefficient). It is of the same order as that of prednisolone and hydrocortisone and much less than that of triamcinolone acetonide. The possible significance of these data is discussed. © 1968.