Benzopyrans as selective estrogen receptor β agonists (SERBAs). Part 2: Structure–activity relationship studies on the benzopyran scaffold

Abstract

Benzopyrans are selective estrogen receptor (ER) β agonists (SERBAs), which bind the ER subtypes α and β in opposite orientations. Here we describe structure–activity relationship studies that led to the discovery of bezopyran 5b. X-ray crystal structures of 5b and a non-selective analog 5c in ERα help explain the observed selectivity of the benzopyran platform.