Heterotricyclic himbacine analogs as potent, orally active thrombin receptor (protease activated receptor-1) antagonists

Pursuing our earlier efforts in the himbacine-based thrombin receptor antagonist area, we have synthesized a series of compounds that incorporate heteroatoms in the C-ring of the tricyclic motif. This effort has resulted in the identification of several potent heterocyclic analogs with excellent affinity for the thrombin receptor. Several of these compounds demonstrated robust inhibition of platelet aggregation in an ex vivo model in cynomolgus monkeys following oral administration. A detailed profile of 28b, a benchmark compound in this series, with a K-i of 4.3 nM, is presented.