Imidazoline-modified benzylimidazolines as h5-HT1D/1B serotonergic ligands Original Research Article

Sumatriptan, a h5-HT1D and h5-HT1B receptor agonist used clinically as a migraine-abortive, produces certain side effects thought to result from its affinity for h5-HT1B receptors. The present investigation extends our work with benzylimidazolines as novel non-tryptamine h5-HT1D/1B ligands. The effect of N-methylation, N-benzylation, ring-aromatization, and variation of the imidazoline ring on affinity both at h5-HT1D and h5-HT1B receptors was examined. Several compounds were identified with good affinity and enhanced (i.e., >100-fold) h5-HT1D versus h5-HT1B selectivity.