Soluble 3′,6-Substituted Indirubins with Enhanced Selectivity toward Glycogen Synthase Kinase -3 Alter Circadian Period

Glycogen synthase kinase -3 (GSK-3) is a key enzyme involved in numerous physiological events and in major diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and cardiac hypertrophy. Indirubins are bis-indoles that can be generated from various natural sources or chemically synthesized. While rather potent and selective as GSK-3 inhibitors, most indirubins exhibit low water solubility. To address the issue of solubility, we have designed novel analogues of 6-bromo-indirubin-3′-oxime with increased hydrophilicity based on the GSK-3/indirubins cocrystal structures. The new derivatives with an extended amino side chain attached at position 3′ showed potent GSK-3 inhibitory activity, enhanced selectivity, and dramatically increased water solubility. Furthermore, some of them displayed little or no cytotoxicity. The new indirubins inhibit GSK-3 in a cellular reporter model. They alter the circadian period measured in rhythmically expressing cell cultures, suggesting that they might constitute tools to investigate circadian rhythm regulation.