CORRELATION BETWEEN MONOAMINO OXIDASE INHIBITOR ACTIVITY OF SOME THIAZOL-2-YLHYDRAZINES AND THEIR INTERACTION WITH DIPALMITOYLPHOSPHATIDYLCHOLINE LIPOSOMES

A calorimetric investigation has been carried out on the influence exerted by some 1-(alkoxybenzoyl)-2-(4-substituted thiazolyl-2-yl)hydrazines, possessing monoamine oxidase inhibitory (MAOI) activity, on the thermotropic behavior of model membranes constituted by dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) vesicles. Attention was paid to evaluate how structural variations of drugs may influence drug-lipid interaction. The examined drugs were found to modify the gel to liquid-crystal phase transition of DPPC liposomes, by causing a shift of the transition temperature (Tm-) toward lower values and a negligible variation in the enthalpy changes(Delta H). The different effects on DPPC thermotropic behavior of these MAOI drugs could be considered in terms of different substituents on the molecule's backbone. The calorimetric results were related to drug's MAO inhibitory activity measured by fluorescence techniques and the apparent distribution coefficient of the compounds in water/n-octanol. A hypothesis on a correlation between a drug's structure, inhibitory activity, and membrane interaction has been suggested.