Dimdazenil

Dimdazenil, sold under the brand name Junoenil, is a medication used in the treatment of insomnia in China.^[1] It is a benzodiazepine derivative and a partial positive allosteric modulator of the GABA_A receptor^[2] with two- to four-fold higher functional affinity for the α₁ subunit relative to the α₂, α₃, and α₅ subunits.

Dimdazenil

Clinical data
Trade names	Junoenil
Other names	EVT-201; EVT201
Legal status
Legal status	Rx in China
Identifiers
IUPAC name 7-Chloro-3-[5-[(dimethylamino)methyl]-1,2,4-oxadiazol-3-yl]-5-methyl-4H-imidazo[1,5-a][1,4]benzodiazepin-6-one
CAS Number	308239-86-3
PubChem CID	9885841
DrugBank	DB05721
ChemSpider	8061514
UNII	6J8AF7CLE4
ChEMBL	ChEMBL5095096
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)	DTXSID301032055
Chemical and physical data
Formula	C17H17ClN6O2
Molar mass	372.81 g·mol−1
3D model (JSmol)	Interactive image
SMILES Clc4cccc3n2cnc(c1nc(on1)CN(C)C)c2CN(C(=O)c34)C
InChI InChI=1S/C17H17ClN6O2/c1-22(2)8-13-20-16(21-26-13)15-12-7-23(3)17(25)14-10(18)5-4-6-11(14)24(12)9-19-15/h4-6,9H,7-8H2,1-3H3 Key:JCYLWUVDHLVGER-UHFFFAOYSA-N

Medical use

Dimdazenil shows effectiveness in the treatment of insomnia, but has less intrinsic activity in comparison to currently-marketed benzodiazepines and the Z-drugs;^[3] however, it is thought that the lower efficacy may result in fewer side effects, such as motor incoordination.^[3] In China, dimdazenil is approved for short-term treatment of insomnia.^[4]

History

Dimdazenil was originally developed by Roche, based on preclinical data, as a non-sedating anxiolytic, but was found to produce sedation in humans in phase I clinical trials. For this reason, it was subsequently licensed to Evotec, which is now developing it for the treatment of insomnia.^[3] By 2007, dimdazenil completed phase II clinical trials for this indication, with positive findings reported.^[5] In China, the drug was developed by Zhejiang Jingxin Pharmaceutical.