Piloty's acid derivative with improved nitroxyl-releasing characteristics.

Recent studies have shown that nitroxyl (HNO) ((1)HNO/(3)NO(-)), which is the one-electron-reduced form of nitric oxide (NO), has unique biological activities, especially in the cardiovascular system, and HNO-releasing agents may have therapeutic potential. Since few HNO donors are available for use under physiological conditions, we synthesized and evaluated a series of Piloty's acid (PA) derivatives and evaluated their HNO-releasing activity under physiological conditions. N-Hydroxy-2-nitrobenzenesulfonamide (17) was the most efficient HNO donor among our synthesized PA derivatives, including the lead compound, 2-bromo-N-hydroxybenzenesulfonamide (2). The high HNO-releasing activity is suggested to be due to electronic and steric effects. Compound 17 may be a useful tool for biological experiments.