Synthesis of physostigmine analogues and evaluation of their anticholinesterase activities.

A series of physostigmine analogues were prepared and evaluated for cholinesterase inhibition activities, including acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE). Most of them showed potent inhibition activities against AChE, in which compound 17 especially exhibited significantly higher selectivity over BChE than phenserine, a compound currently on clinical trial. Discussion about the relationships between structure and activity of these derivatives was also presented.