Potential antiatherosclerotic agents. 6. Hypocholesterolemic trisubstituted urea analogues.

The discovery that a series of N,N-dialkyl-N'-arylureas were inhibitors of the ACAT enzyme has led to a structure-activity study involving the systematic modification of three sites of the urea backbone. This study culminated in the selection of N'-(2,4-dimethylphenyl)-N-benzyl-N-n-butylurea (115) for more extensive biological evaluation. ACAT inhibitors are seen as potentially beneficial agents against hypercholesterolemia and atherosclerosis.