A novel series of hybrid compounds derived by combining 2-aminotetralin and piperazine fragments: binding activity at D2 and D3 receptors

A series of 7-hydroxy-2-[N-alkyl-(N-(4-phenylpiperazine)-alkyl)amino]tetralins was developed based on a novel hybrid approach that combined 2-aminotetralin and arylpiperazine pharmacophoric moieties. Our preliminary study revealed that a four-methylene butyl linker produced very potent compounds for both the D2 and D3 receptors. Further structure–activity studies led to a novel template showing 50- to 100-fold selectivity for the D3 receptor.