CYCLIC PENTAPEPTIDES DISPLAYING SOMATOSTATIN ANTAGONISM AND METHOD OF TREATMENT OF MAMMALS THEREWITH

Abstract: Novel cyclic pentapeptide somatostatin antagonists and method for increasing the release of growth hormone, insulin, and glucagon in mammals.

Description: CYCLIC PENTAPEPTIDES DISPLAYING SOMATOSTATIN ANTAGONISM AND METHOD OF TREATMENT OF MAMMALS THEREWITH The invention herein described relates to novel cyclic pentapeptide somatostatin antagonists and method for increasing the release of growth hormone, insulin, and glucagon in mammals therewith. Mammalian somatostatin, which has the follow¬ ing tetradecapeptide sequence: , , H-Ala-Gly-Cys-Lys-Asn-Phe-Phe-Try-Lys-Thr-Phe-Thr-Ser-Cys-QH 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 inhibits the release of growth hormone from the pitui¬ tary and insulin and glucagon from the pancreatic islet cells. It also has inhibitory actions on numerous other endocrine and gastrointestinal activities in mammals. These inhibitory effects are well documented (c.f., P. Brazeau zt al . , ■Science 179: 77-79, (1973); W. A. Mortimer zt_ αi_., Lancet 1: 697-701, (1974), and C. A. Meyers e a . , in Gastrointes inal Hormones, edited by G. B. J. Glass, New York: Raven Press, 1980, pages 363-385, and their importance to the life cycle of mammals is clearly recognized. . Although hundreds of somatostatin analogs have been synthesized and evaluated in an attempt to find agonists, antagonists or competitive inhibitors of said hormone, no entirely satisfactory somatostatin antagonist or competitive inhibitor of this hormone has been available or disclosed in the art. It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a novel somatostatin antagonist effective for increasing release of growth hormone, insulin, and glucagon in mammals. Surprisingly, this objective has been achieved with the synthesis of cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp- Lys-Thr(Bzl )] , and derivatives and pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof. The novel somatostatin antagonists of this invention are cyclic pentapeptides depicted by formula (I) and the pharmaceutically acceptable .salts thereof, having the following amino acid sequence: wherein X is phenylalanyl, tyrosyl, tryptophyl, 4-chlo- rophenylalanyl, 4-bromophenylalanyl, 4-fluorophenyl- alanyl, histidyl, 5-fluorotryptophyl, 5-chlorotrypto- phyl, 5-bromotryptophyl, 5-methoxytryptophyl, 5-methyl' tryptophyl, -methoxyphenylalanyl, 4-benzyloxyphenyl- alanyl, 4-methylphenylalanyl, or OMPI iΛ IPO Y is jD-tryptophyl , E>-phenylalanyl , j-4-chlorophenyl- alanyl , jD-4-bromophenylalanyl , I)-4-fl uorophenylalanyl , _-4-methoxyphenyiaianyi , D-4-benzyioxyphenyiaianyi , —U-methylphenylalanyl , " t y ros y 1 » -5-fluorotryptophyl , D-5-bromotryptophyl , _D.-5-chlorotryptophyl , E>-5-methoxy- tryptophyl, p_-5-methyltryptophyl or D-histidyl; Z is lysyl or arginyl ; Thr is threonyl and R]_ is hydrogen, benzyl or substituted benzyl, connected to the threonyl amino acid residue through its 3-oxygen atom. The R]_- group referred to above may thus be illustrated as follows: wherein R 2 is hydrogen, halogen (including fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine, Cχ-Cn al oxy (preferably methoxy) or C1-C4 alkyl (preferably methyl). Preferred compounds of the invention have the formula (I) structure wherein R ] _ is hydrogen or benzyl; Z is lysyl, and X and Y represent chiral amino acid residues selected from those described for X and Y above. An especially preferred cyclic pentapeptide somatostatin antagonist of this invention is the cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Rι)] which may be illus¬ trated as follows: CH 2 - -CH^ -CH 2 wherein Phe is phenylalanyl; _-trp is _-tryptophyl ; Lys is lysyl; Thr is threonyl, and R^ is hydrogen or benzyl. The term "pharmaceutically acceptable salts," as used in the present specification, is intended to mean non-toxic acid addition salts which are commonly used in the pharmaceutical industry. Among those of particular interest in the present invention are the hydrochloride, phosphate, sulfate, laurate, citrate, gluconate, succinate; acetate, and oleate salts of the formula (I) compounds. These salts are readily prepared by methods well known in the art. In keeping with standard nomenclature, ab¬ breviations for chiral amino acid residues used in the present specification and claims are as follows: Abbreviation Name Phe = L.-phenylalanyl Tyr = L-tyrosyl ■ Trp = L^-tryptophyl (4-Cl)Phe = ^-4-chlorophenylalanyl (4-Br)Phe = _L-4-bromophenylalanyl (4-F)Phe = L.-4-fluorophenylalanyi His = L.-histidyl O PI Abbreviation Name (4-CH 3 )Phe = L-4 -methyl phenylalanyl (4-CH 3 0)Phe s L^-4-methoxy phenylalanyl (4-Bzl-0)Phe r L-4-benzyloxyphenylalanyl (5-F)Trp = J--5-fluoro tryptophyl (5-Cl)Trp s L-5-chloro tryptophyl (5-Br)Trp = L.-5-bromo tryptophyl (5-CH 3 0)Trp = L.-5-methoxytryptophyl (5-CH 3 )Trp = L-5 -methyl tryptophyl D-(4-F)Phe s p_-4-fluorophenylalanyl D-(4-Cl)Phe s D-4-chlorophenylalanyl D-(4-Br)Phe s D-4-bromo phenylalanyl D-(4-CH 3 )Phe = E>-4-methyl phenylalanyl D-(4-CH 3 0)Phe - D-4-methoxyphenylalanyl D-(4-Bzl-0)Phe - p_-4-benzyloxyphenylalanyl D-Phe . S p_-phenylalanyl D-Tyr - p_-tyrosyl _-Trp - p_-tryptophyl D-(5-F)Trp - _-5-f luoro tryptophyl D-(5-Br)Trp - _-5-bromo tryptophyl D-(5-Cl)Trp - D-5-chloro tryptophyl D-(5-CH 3 0)Trp - E>-5-methoxytryptophyl D-(5-CH 3 )Trp = p_-5 -methyl tryptophyl D-His r D-histidyl Lys s L-lysyl Arg • x L ^ -arginyl Ala s L-alanyl Gly = L-glycyl Cys 5 L-cysteinyl Asn = _L-asparginyl Ser = L-seryl Pro = L.-prolyl Other abbreviations used in the present spec¬ ification are: Bzl benzyl FMOC fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl Boc _t-butyloxycarbonyl HPLC high performance liquid chromatography TFA , trifluoroacetic acid TLC thin-layer chromatography In accordance with the process of the present invention, solid-phase synthesis of the formula (I) peptides can be carried out on a Beckman 990 automatic peptide- synthesizer. Preparative HPLC can be performed on a thick-walled glass column (2.5 x 45 cm) containing Whatman LRP-1 reverse phase packing (C 8 silica 13-20 um) pumped with Fluid Metering Company pump and pulse damp- . er; and amino acid analyses can be run on a Beck- man 119 CL analyzer and processed with a System AA computing integrator. Amino acid derivatives utilized in the prep¬ aration of the compounds of the present invention are available from several chemical supply houses includ¬ ing: Bachem, Inc., Torrance, California; and Chemical Dynamics, Inc., Plainfield, New Jersey. Conveniently, the formula (I) peptides of this invention, cyclo[Pro-(X)-(Y)-(Z)-Thr-R ] _] , -can be prepared beginning with the appropriate α-amino pro¬ tected amino acid coupled to an appropriate resin, such as a polystyrene resin with one-two percent by weight of divinyl benzene as a cross-linking agent. Protecting groups for the amino acids include: _t-butyloxycarbonyl, isopropyloxycarbonyl, diisopropyl- oxycarbonyl, benzyloxycarbonyl, cyclopentyloxycarbonyl , and the like; but, _t-butyloxycarbonyl or isopropyloxy¬ carbonyl are generally preferred. In the process, FM0C-(Z)-[Boc-Thr(Bzl)]-Pro- (X)-(Y)-0-CH 2 -resin is prepared beginning with the appropriate Boc-(Y)-Merrifield resin, where Y is _D-Trp, D-Phe, D-Tyr, D-(5-F)Trp, D-(5-Br)Trp, D-(5-Cl)Trp, D- (5-0CH 3 )Trp, D-(5-CH 3 )Trp, D-(4-F)Phe, D-(4-Cl)Phe, D- 4-Br)Phe, D-(4-CH 3 0)Phe, D-(4-Bzl-0)Phe, or _-His. The resin is placed in the reaction vessel of the peptide synthesizer which has been programmed to carry out the following work-wash cycle: (a) methylene chloride, (b) 33 TFA in methylene chloride, (c) methylene chloride, (d) ethyl alcohol, (e) methylene chloride, (f) 10% triethylamine in methylene chloride, and (g) methylene chloride. The washed resin with the Boc group removed is then stirred with _t-Boc-(X), where X is Phe, Tyr, Trp, (4-CDPhe, (4-Br)Phe, (4-F)Phe, (4-CH 3 )Phe, (4-CH 3 0)- Phe, (4-Bzl-0)Phe, (5-F)Trp, (5-Cl)Trp, (5-Br)Trp, (5- CH 3 0)Trp, (5-CH 3 )Trp, His or and diisopropylcarbodiimide in methylene chloride. The protected attached amino acids are then cycled through steps (b) through (g) in the above wash program. There¬ after, the following amino acids are coupled by the same cycle of events: _t-Boc-Pro, t^Boc-Thr(Rχ) and FMOC-(Z)- Boc, wherein R^ is benzyl or substituted benzyl, and Z is Lys or Arg. These steps provide the FM0C-(Z)Boc-Thr- (Rl)-Pro-(X)-(Y)-0-CH 2 -resin. Removal of the protected peptide from the resin by treatment with a ten-fold excess of hydrazine in methanol is accompanied by loss of the base-sensitive FMOC group to give H(Z)Boc-Thr(R]_)- Pro-(X)-(Y)NHNH , which is cyclized with hydrochloric acid and isoamylnitrite to give cyclo[Pro-(X)-(Y)-(Z)- Boc-Thr(Rι)]. Treatment of this peptide with 90% TFA in water .containing- 1% ethanedithiol then yields the de¬ sired somatostatin antagonist of this invention cyclo- [Pro-(X)-(Y)-(Z)-Thr(Rι)]. These reactions are graphic¬ ally illustrated in the Flow Diagram I below: FLOW DIAGRAM I FMOC-(Z)Boc-Thr(R 1 )-Pro-(X)-(Y)-0-CH 2 -resin NHNH 2 /MeOH H-(Z)Boc-Thr(R 1 )-Pro-(X)-(Y)-NHNH 2 CycloCPro-(X)-(Y)-(Z)Boc-Thr(R 1 )] Cyclo[Pro-(X)-(Y)-(Z Alternatively, the compounds of this invention ' may also be prepared by the process hereinafter de¬ scribed. After conventional solid-phase assembly be¬ ginning with 1 mmole of Boc-Phe-Merrifield resin (1% cross-linked), the protected peptide hydrazide, H-D- Trp-Lys(Cl-Z)-Thr(Bzl)-Pro-Phe-NHNH 2 , is cleaved from the support by treatment with hydrazine in methanol and isolated by a procedure described by D. F. Veber ef_ a.1. , Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, U.S.A., 75: 2636-2640, (1978). Without further purification, the hydrazide is converted to the azide, neutralized with triethylamine, and cyclized in DMF solution to yield the protected ninhydrin negative material, cyclo[Pro-Phe-p_- Trp-Lys-(Cl-Z)-Thr(Bzl) ] . When this protected ninhydrin negative material is hydrogenated at atmospheric pres¬ sure and room temperature over 10% Pd on charcoal, the • compound, cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl ) ] , is formed and found to be a very effective somatostatin antagonist. When, however, the protected crude ninhydrin negative material is deprotected by treatment with HF-anisole under standard conditions, as described by G. T. Engberg 2^ α^., Nature, 293- 222-223, (1981), and purified by preparative HPLC eluting with 10-55% gradient of CH3CN in 20% AcOH, the reaction yields the pure peptide, cyclo(Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr) , which has somatostatin antagonist activity. It is also found that HF treatment of the active somatostatin antagonist, cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp- Lys-Thr(Bzl)] , converts it to the peptide, cyclo(Pro- Phe-p_-Trp-Lys-Thr) , which also has somatostatin antag¬ onist activity. The above reactions are graphically illustrated in Flow Diagram II below. FLOW DIAGRAM II H-D-Trp-Lys(Cl-Z)-Thr(Bzl)-Pro-Phe-NHNH F Cyclo[Pro Among the cyclic pentapetides of the present invention that display somatostatin antagonism and can be prepared by the process described and illustrated in Flow Diagram II above, are: Cyclo[Pro-Phe-_D-Tyr-Arg-Thr(Bzl) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Hls-D-(5-F)Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-(4-F)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(3-F-Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-(5-CH 3 )Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-Tyr-_D-Tyr-Lys-Thr(Bzl) 3 CycloCPro-Phe-D-His-Lys-Thr(Bzl)] Cyclo[Pro-Trp-_D-Phe-Arg-Thr(Bzl) ] Cyclo[Pro-(4-Br)Phe-D-(5-Br)Phe-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-Tyr-D-His-Lys-Thr(Bzl )] ; CycloCPro-Tyr-D-H-is-Arg-Thr(Bzl)]; CycloCPro-Trp-D-Tyr-Lys-Thr(3-CH 3 -Bzl) ]; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-(4-F)Phe-Lys-Thr (Bzl ) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-(4-Cl )Phe-Lys-Thr (Bzl ) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-(4-Br)Phe-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-Pbe-D-(4-CH 3 )Phe-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-rj-(4-CH 0)Phe-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-(4-Bzl-0)Phe-Lys-Thr(Bzl)j; Cyclo[Pro-(4-Me)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-(4-CH 3 0)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-(4-Bzl-0)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; CycloCPro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr (Bzl ) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Arg-Thr (Bzl ) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(4-Cl-Bzl)J; CycloC Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr ( 4-0CH 3 -Bzl ) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(4-CH 3 -Bzl)]; CycloC Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Arg-Thr-(3-Br-Bzl) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Tyr-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl )] ; Cyclo[Pro-Trp-_D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-(4-Cl)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-(4-F)Phe-_D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; CycloCPro-His-_D-Tyr-Lys-Thr(Bzl ) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-Trp-D-(5-0CH )Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl ) ] ; Cyclo[Pro-(4-Cl )Phe-D-Tyr-Arg-Th (4-OCH 3 -Bzl ) ] ; CycloCPro-Phe-D-Phe-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-His-D-Phe-Lys-Thr(4-Cl-Bzl)]; Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-(5-0CH 3 )Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl ) ] , and CycloC Pro- (4-Br )Phe-D-Tyr-Arg-Thr ( Bzl)]. "&υR£Λ OMPI ι?o (Pro ■Phe-D-Tyr-Arg-Thr) ; [Pro •His-D-(5-F)Trp-Lys-Thr3 ; [Pro -Phe-D-(5-CH 3 )Trp-Lys-Thr3; (Pro •Tyr- -Tyr-Lys-Thr) (Pro ■Phe-D-His-Lys-Thr) (Pro ■Trp-D-Phe-Arg~Thr) [Pro ■(4-Br)Phe-J)-(5-Br)Phe-Lys-Thr3 ; (Pro -Tyr-I-His-Lys-Thr) ; (Pro •Tyr-D-His-Arg-Thr) ; [Pro -Phe-D-(4-F)Phe-Lys-Thr3 ; [Pro •Phe-D-(4-C1)Phe-Lys-Thr3 ; [Pro •Phe-D-(4-Br)Phe-Lys-Thr3 ; [Pro •Phe-D-(4-CH 3 )Phe-Lys-Thr3 ; [Pro •Phe-D-(4-CH 0)Phe-Lys-Thr3; [Pro •Phe-2-(4-Bzl-0)Phe-Lys-Thr3; [Pro •( -Me)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr3 ; [Pro •(4-CH 3 0)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr3 ; [Pro •(4-Bzl-0 ) Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr3 ; (Pro ■Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr) ; (Pro •Phe-D-Trp-Arg-Thr) ; (Pro •Tyr-D-Trp-Lys-Thr) ; (Pro •Trp-2-Trp-Lys-Thr) ; [Pro •(4-Cl)Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr3; [Pro • (4-F)Phe-p_-Trp-Lys-Thr3 ; (Pro ■His-_-Tyr-Lys-Thr ) ; [Pro ■Trp-D- ( 5-OCH 3 ) Trp-Lys-Thr 3 ; (Pro •Phe-D-Phe-Lys-Thr ) " ; [Pro ■ Phe-D-(5-OCH 3 )Trp- ys-Thr3, and [Pro •(4-Br)Phe-D-Tyr-Arg-Thr3. The compounds of formula (I) are useful as ' somatostatin antagonists and are effective for increas¬ ing the release of growth hormone, insulin, and glucagon, in mammalian hosts, when administered thereto at dosages of from 0.000002 to 1 mg/kg of mammalian body weight per day. The formula (I) compounds may be administered orally in the form of a feed additive or as a bolus, pill, tablet, oral gel, or the like, designed to deliver the active compound at the dosage level desired. They may also be administered parenterally by intramuscular, subcutaneous, intraperitoneal or intravenous injection, or as a transdermal or nasal spray. As will hereinafter be shown, injection of formula (I) peptide into rats blocks the inhibitory effects of exogenous somatostatin on growth hormone, insulin, and glucagon ' release. In practice, it is also found that in fasted rats, basal hepatic portal insulin and glucagon levels are significantly increased after treatment with cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) 3 ; and, further, that plasma growth hormone levels in NEMBUTAL ® - anesthetized and stimulated rats are increased after injection with the above-said compound. The following examples further illustrate the present invention, but are not intended to be limita¬ tive thereof. NEMBUTAL ® sodium pentobarbital is a product of Abbott Laboratories. EXAMPLE 1 Preparation of N α 9-fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl-N g -tert- butyloxycarbonyl- -lysyl-0-benzyl-L.-threonyl- -protyl- t-phenylalan l-D-tryptophyl-0-CH 2 resin t-Butyloxycarbonyl-D-tryptophan-Merrifield resin (1% cross-linked, 2.5 g, 1.0 mmole) is placed in the reaction vessel of a Beckman Model 990 automatic peptide synthesizer programmed to carry out the following work- wash cycle: (a) CH 2 C1 ; (b) 33% trifluoroacetic acid in CH C1 (two times for one and 25 minutes each); (c) CH 2 C1 2 ; (d) C 2 H 5 0H; (e) CH 2 C1 2 ; (f) 10% (C 2 H 5 ) 3 N in CH 2 C1 2 (two times for two minutes each); (g) CH 2 C1 2 . The washed resin with the _t-butyloxycarbonyl (Boc) group removed is stirred with ^-butyloxycarbonyl- phenylalanine (_t-Boc-Phe) and diisopropylcarbodiimide (3 mmole) in CH 2 C1 2 for one hour and the resulting amino acid resin then washed with CH 2 C1 2 . The protected, attached amino acids are then cycled through steps (b) through (g) in the above wash program. The following amino acids (3 mmole) are then coupled successively by the same treatment cycle: J -butyloxycarbonyl-prolyl (_t-Boc-Pro) ; _t-butyloxycarbonyl-threonyl-benzyl [t,- Boc-Thr(Bzl) 3 and fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl-lysyl- _t-butyloxycarbonyl [FMOC-Lys(Boc) 3• Upon completion of the last coupling reaction, the resulting resin is washed with methanol to obtain the above-identified resinatέd product. OMPI sfr EXAMPLE 2 Preparation of N ε -tert-butyloxycarbon l-L-lysyl-Q-benzyl- L-threonyl-L-prolyl-L-phenylalanyl-D-tryptophyl-NHNH2 N α 9-fluorenylme hyloxycarbonyl-Nε-^er_t-butyl- oxycarbonyl-L-lysyl-O-benzyl-L-threonyl-L-prolyl-L- phenylalanyl-D-tryρtophyl-0-CH2 resin (1.87 g, 0.5 mmol) is suspended in 70 ml of dry methanol and the thus prepared suspension then treated with 7 ml of anhydrous hydrazine. The mixture is stirred for 24 hours at ambient temperature and then filtered, washed with methanol and the methanol extracts evaporated to yield an oil that solidified upon tritoraction with ether to give 0.65 g of the above-named product in the form of a white powder. EXAMPLE 3 Preparation of pyclo(L-prolyl-L-phenylalanyl-D-trypto- phyl-Ns-teτt-butyloxycaτbonyl-L-lysyl-O-benzyl-L- threonyl) The peptide hydrazide N g -tert-butyloxycarbonyl- L-lysyl-O-benzyl-L-threonyl-L-prolyl-L ^ -phenylalanyl- D-tryptophyl-NHNH2 (0-3 g, 0.33 mmol) is dissolved in 10 ml of dry dime h lformamide (DMF) and cooled to -35°C. The solution is then acidified to pH 1.5 with hydrochloric acid in tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol (HC1/THF) and isoamylnitrite (67 ul) . The mixture is stirred at -35°C for 45 minutes and then added to 1.5 ml of dimethylformamide (DMF) and cooled to -25°C. The reaction mixture is then neutralized to pH 7.5 with diisopropylethylamine and maintained at -25°C for 24 hours and 5°C for an additional 24 hours. Evaporation of the DMF gives the above-identified product as a brown oil that exhibits a major spot by thin-layer chromatography (tic). EXAMPLE 4 Preparation of cyclo(L-prolyl-L-phenylalanyl-D-trypto- phyl-L-lysyl-O-benzyl-j-threonyl) Tfie fully protected peptide cyclo(L-prolyl-I 1 - phenylalanyl-D-tτyptophyl-N ε -tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L- lysyl-O-benzyl-L- hreonyl) is dissolved in 50 ml of a mixture of trifluoroacetic acid, water, and 1,2-ethane- dithiol prepared in a ratio of 45:5:2 by volume. The solution is stirred at ambient temperature for 40 minutes and then evaporated to an oil. . The resulting oil is dissolved in 50% acetic acid and eluted on a column (2.5 x 95 cm) of Sephadex G-15 with 50% acetic acid. Lyophilized material from a major peak absorbing at 280 n is then applied to a column of Whatman LRP-1 octadecylsilanesilica and eluted with a linear gradient of 10 to 15% acetonitrile in 20% acetic acid solution. - The major peak is collected and lyophilized to give the required peptide as a white, fluffy powder (90 mg) . This material gives one Cl-starch, ninhydrin and Ehrlich reagent-positive spot with the following R £ ι s on silica gel TLC plates: n-Bu0H:Ac0H:H20:Et0Ac (1:1:1:1), 0.68; n-BuOH:AcOH:H2θ (4:1:1), 0.47; EtOAc: pyridine:AcOH:H2θ (5:5:1:3), 0.79; 2-PrOH:lMAcOH (2:1), 0.61. Amino acid analysis of a sample hydrolyzed in me hanesulfonic acid containing 0.1% tryptamine gives: Thr, 0.98; Pro, 1.01; Lys, 0.97; Trp, 0.85. EXAMPLE 5 Preparation of cyclo(L-prolyl-L-phenylalanyl-D-tryptophyl- L-lysyl-L-threonyl) The dried peptide, cyclo(L-prolyl-L-phenylal- anyl-D-tryptophyl-L ^ -lysyl-O-benzyl-L-threonyl) , is placed in a vessel suitable for HF cleavage. This vessel also contains a magnetic stirring bar. A small quantity of anisole sufficient to wet the peptide is added to this vessel. The vessel is next connected to an HF line and placed under vacuum to remove any air therein. The vessel is then cooled to about -78°C with a dry ice-acetone bath. Doubly distilled HF (about 10 ml/g of peptide) is added to the vessel. The dry ice-acetone bath is then removed from the vessel and replaced by an ice-water bath. The vessel's contents are vigorously stirred for about 45 minutes while the vessel remains immersed in the ice-water bath. Most of the HF in the vessel is then removed by water aspiration. After the majority of HF is removed by water aspiration, the remaining HF and anisole are removed via a vacuum pump to. afford the title peptide. EXAMPLE 6 Evaluation of peptide effects on growth hormone, insulin, and glucagon release in mammals using the rat as the test species In this evaluation, the procedures described by W. A. Murphy zt. i ' > Endocrinology, 109:491-495 (1980) , were employed. In growth hormone (GH) experiments, male rats (Charles Rivers) were anesthetized with NEMBUTAL ® (5 mg per 100 g/BW) which also served to maintain stimulated n plasma. GH levels. Exactly 30 minutes after the rats were anesthetized, 0.5 ml of saline or the test peptide in saline was administered as a sc bolus. A 1 ml blood sample was drawn from the jugular vein 15 minutes after the injection. For examining blocking effects of the _ analog on somatostatin, the cyclic peptide was given five minutes prior to somatostatin. GH levels were determined using NIADDKD rat GH RIA components. Data obtained are reported in Table I below. TABLE I Effects of the Cyclic Pentapeptides, the Compounds of the Present Invention, Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) } and the Unprotected Cyclo(Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr) Com¬ pared To Somatostatin on GH Levels in the Rat (Five Animals Per Group unless otherwise given) . Dose (μg/100 g body Peptide weight) GH (ng/ml)* A) Saline - 389 t 60 (6) B) Somatostatin' 0.4 152 - 51 (5) C) Cyclo(Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr) 2 730 + 110 (6) D) Cyclo(Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr 10 459.- 100 (5) C + B 75- 29 (5) D + B 114- 36 (4) A) Saline - 648+ 177 B) Cyclo(Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr) 0.3 1265 - 318 C) Cyclo(Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr) 0.6 1072 - 187 D) Cyclo(Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr) 1.2 728 - 143 A) Saline 497 - 80 B) Somatostatin 0.5 173 - 46 C) Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) j 0.2 1724 - 393 D) Cyclo[Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)] 0.6 812 - 163 C + B 149 - 73 D + B 370 - 73 * = Mean t standard error (n) From the above data, it can be seen that the compound of ' the present invention and an unprotected relative thereof were evaluated to determine the effects of both peptides on NEMBUTAL ® -stimula ed GH release in rats. Radioimmunoassayable GH levels in control-stimu¬ lated jugular blood 648 t 111 ng/ml showed an increase to 1265 - 318 after injection with 0.3 μg/100 g body weight of the unprotected analog cyclo(Pro-Phe-D-Trp- Lys-Thr) ; whereas, the radioimmunoassayable GH levels in control-stimulated jugular blood of 497 t 80 ng/ml rose significantly to 1724 T 393 ng/ml after injection of 0.2 g/100 g body weight of the compound of the invention, i.e., the protected compound cyclo[Pro-Phe- D-Trp-Lys- Thr(Bzl) ] . From the above data, it appears that the antagonist effect of the compounds of the present invention is not wholly dependent on the presence of the aromatic benzyl protecting group on the th eonine. OM?

Claims: HAT IS CLAIMED IS: 1. A cyclic pentapeptide compound having the structural formula: wherein X is phenylalanyl, tyrosyl, tryptophyl, 4- chlorophenylalanyl, 4-bromophenylalanyl, 4-fluoro- phenylalanyl, 4-methoxyphenylalanyI, 4-benzyloxyphenyl- alanyl, 4-methylphenylalanyl, 5-fluorotryptophyl, 5-chlorotryptophyl, 5-bromotryptophyl, 5-methoxytryp¬ tophyl, 5-methyl ryptophyl, histidyl or Y is D-tryptophyl, p_-5-fluorotryptophyl, D-5-bromo- tryptophyl, D-5-chlorotryptophyl, D-5-methoxytryptophyl, D-5-methyltryptophyl, D-phenylalanyl, D-4-chlorophenyl- alanyl, D-4-bromophenylalanyl, D-4-fluorophenylalanyl, D-4-methoxyphenylalanyl, D-4-benzyloxyphenylalanyl, D-4-methylphenyialanyl," D-tyrosyl or D-histidyl; Z is lysyl or arginyl; Thr is threonyl and Ri is hydrogen, benzyl or substituted benzyl connected to the threonyl amino acid residue through its 3-oxygen atom; or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof. FREAIΓ OMPI 2. A compound according to Claim 1, wherein R is hydrogen or benzyl; Z is lysyl and X and Y repre¬ sent chiral amino acid residues selected from those described for X and Y in said Claim 1. 3. A compound according to Claim 1, cyclo[Pro- Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Rχ) J wherein Rx is hydrogen or and R2 is H, F, Cl, Br, I, C1-C4 alkoxy or C1-C alkyl; or cyclo-[Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Arg-Thr(Rχ) 3 wherein is hydrogen and R2 is H, F, Cl, Br, I, C1-C4 alkoxy or C1-C4 alkyl. 4. A compound according to Claim 1, cyclo- [Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) 3 ; or cyclo(Pro-Phe-D-Trp- Lys-Thr) . 5. A method for increasing release of growth hormone, insulin and glucagon, in mammals comprising administering thereto from 0.00001 to 1 mg/kg of mammalian body weight/day of a compound having the structural formula: wherein X is phenylalanyl, tyrosyl, tryptophyl, 4- chlorophenylalanyl, 4-bromophenylalanyl , 4-fluoro- phenylalanyl, 4-methoxyphenylalanyl, 4-benzyloxyphenyl- alanyl, 4-methylphenylalanyl, 5-fluorotryptophyl, 5- chlorotryptophyl, 5-bromotryptophyl, 5-methoxytryp¬ tophyl, 5-methyltryptophyl, histidyl or ; Y is D-tryptophyl, D-5-fluorotryptophyl, D-5-bromotryp- tophyl, D-5-chlorotryptophyl, D-5-methoxytryptophyl, p_-5-methyltryptophyl, D-phenylalanyl, D-4-chlorophenyl- alanyl, D-5-bromophenylalanyl, D-4-fluorophenylalanyl, D-4-methoxyphenylalanyl, D-4-benzyloxyphenylalanyl, D-4-methylphenylalanyl, D-tyrosyl, or histidyl; Z is lysyl or arginyl; R is hydrogen or R2 is H, Cl, F, Br, I, C1-C4 alkoxy or C1-C4 alkyl; or pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof. 6. A method according to Claim 5 for re¬ leasing growth hormone in mammals, wherein the compound administered to said mammalian host is cyclo[Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) 3 ; or cyclo(Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr) . 7. A method according to Claim 5 for re¬ leasing insulin in mammals, wherein the compound ad¬ ministered to said mammalian host is cyclo[Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) ; or cyclo(Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr) . 8. A method according to Claim 5 for re¬ leasing glucagon in mammals, wherein the compound ad¬ ministered to said mammalian host is cyclo[ Pro-Phe-D- Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl) ] ; or cyclo(Pro-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr) . 9. A method for the preparation of a cyclic pentapeptide compound having the structural formula: wherein X is phenylalanyl, tyrosyl, tryptophyl, 4- chlorophenylalanyl, 4-bromophenylalanyl, 4-fluoro- phenylalanyl, 4-methoxyphenylalanyl, 4-benzyloxyphenyl- alanyl, 4-methylphenylalanyl, 5-fluorotryptophyl, 5- chlorotryptophyl, 5-bromotryptophyl, 5-methoxytryp¬ tophyl, 5-methyltryptophyl, histidyl or Y is p_-tryptophyl, D-5-fluorotryptophyl, D-5-bromo- tryptophyl, D-5-chlorotryptophyl, D-5-methoxytryptophyl, D-5-methyltryptophyl, D-phenylalanyl, D-4-chlorophenyl- alanyl, p_-4-bromophenylalanyl, D-4-fluorophenylalanyl, D-4-methoxyphenylalanyl, p_-4-benzyloxyphenylalanyl, p_-4-methylphenylalanyl, D-tyrosyl or D-histidyl; Z is lysyl or arginyl; Thr is threonyl and R is hydrogen, benzyl or substituted benzyl connected to the threonyl amino acid residue through its 3-oxygen atom; or a pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof; said method characterized by reacting an amino acid protected by an -amino acid protecting group, coupled to a resin with about 1% to 2% by weight, of a cross-linking agent. 10. A method according to Claim 9, wherein the amino acid protecters are _t-butyloxycarbonyl, iso- propylcarbonyl, diisopropyloxycarbonyl, benzyloxy- carbonyl, cyclopentylonycarbonyl; the resin is poly¬ styrene resin; and the cross-linking agent is divinyl benzene.

Inventors: COY DAVID HOWARD, MURPHY WILLIAM ANDREW, COY, DAVID, HOWARD, MURPHY, WILLIAM, ANDREW
Applicants: COY DAVID HOWARD, MURPHY WILLIAM ANDREW, COY, DAVID, HOWARD, MURPHY, WILLIAM, ANDREW
Application year: 1984
Main classification: C07C103
IPC codes: A61K38, C07K7, C07K14