Discovery of 2H-Chromen-2-one Derivatives as G Protein-Coupled Receptor-35 Agonists

A family of 2H-chromen-2-one derivatives were identified as G protein-coupled receptor-35 (GPR35) agonists using dynamic mass redistribution assays in HT-29 cells. The compounds with 1H-tetrazol-5-yl in 3-substituted position displayed higher potency than the corresponding carboxyl analogs, and the hydroxyl group in the 7-position also played an important role in GPR35 agonistic activity. 6-Bromo-7-hydroxy-8-nitro-3-(1H-tetrazol-5-yl)-2H-chromen-2-one (50) was found to be the most potent GPR35 agonist with an EC50 of 5.8 nM. Calculating the physicochemical properties of compounds with moderate to high potency suggested that compounds 30, 50, and 51 showed good druggability. This study provides a novel series of GPR35 agonists, and compound 50 may be a powerful tool to study GPR35.