OSAR in a series of muscarinic agents. Note III--Alkyltrimethylammonium salts, ethers and esters of choline.

In the light of the experience gained studying various sets of muscarinic ligands related to a rigid model, flexible structures such as alkyltrimethylammonium salts, ethers and esters of choline have been prepared and their affinities (pD2) have been studied. The quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR) show that the pD2 value is strongly dependent on hydrophobic and steric parameters of the ligand substituent. Moreover, two indicator variables are considered to take ito account extra-activities connected with ligand special structural features. The overall QSAR confirm that the electrostatic attraction, the hydrophobic bonding and the polar interaction holding the ligand on the receptor are individually weak; however, these three forces collectively permit a more complete utilization of the receptor binding site.