Synthesis of aminoalkyl-substituted coumarin derivatives as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors.

Alzheimer's disease, one of the most common forms of dementia, is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder symptomatically characterized by declines in memory and cognitive abilities. To date, the successful therapeutic strategy to treat AD is maintaining levels of acetylcholine by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase (AChE). In the present study, coumarin derivatives were designed and synthesized as AChE inhibitors based on the lead structure of scopoletin. Of those synthesized, pyrrolidine-substituted coumarins 3b and 3f showed ca. 160-fold higher AChE inhibitory activities than scopoletin. These compounds also ameliorated scopolamine-induced memory deficit in mice when administered orally at the dose of 1 and 2 mg/kg.