New 4-aminoquinoline Mannich base antimalarials. 1. Effect of an alkyl substituent in the 5'-position of the 4'-hydroxyanilino side chain.

A new series of 4-aminoquinoline Mannich base derivatives have been synthesized, in which the 3'-diethylamino function of amodiaquine (AQ) is replaced by a 3'-tert-butylamino group and an aliphatic hydrocarbon entity is incorporated into the 5'-position of the 4'-hydroxyanilino side chain. Seven alkyl Mannich base derivatives were screened and found to be active against both chloroquine-sensitive and -resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum in vitro. The propyl and isopropyl alkyl derivatives were found to be the most active; consequently these derivatives were tested against a nonsensitive strain of Plasmodium berghi in vivo and found to be 3-fold more active than AQ, irrespective of the route of administration (oral or intraperitoneal).