Boosting Synaptic Transmission with Pyridine and Nicotinamide Derivatives
This collaborative initiative investigates novel pyridine-based compounds designed to enhance synaptic transmission and develop advanced neurological therapies.
Project Summary
In the proposed project, our team aims to investigate the use of newly synthesized compounds based on pyridine and nicotinamide structures (3-hydroxy-2-pyridines and derivatives of vitamins B6 and B3) as bioactive agents in modulating neurotransmission.
We will determine the cytotoxicity, myotoxicity, and genotoxicity of the tested compounds to eliminate those with potential adverse effects and reduce the costs of future preclinical studies. Using the obtained results, we will conduct a structure-activity relationship analysis and, by applying a medicinal chemistry approach, predict new compounds with improved efficacy, selectivity, and safety profiles. Through this multidisciplinary approach, we will gain a comprehensive picture of our compounds' activity across three interconnected neurotransmission systems—cholinergic, glutamatergic, and serotonergic—and draw conclusions regarding their potential as drugs for modulating neurotransmission.
Objectives
First objective
Assesment of the compounds’ potential to serve as agonists or antagonists at key signal-transduction receptors involved in fast-synaptic neurotransmission (nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR), N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDAR) or a-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazolepropionic acid receptor (AMPAR) and 5-hydroxytryptamine receptors (5-HT3).
Second objective
Assesment of the compounds’ ability to inhibit monoamine oxidase (MAO-A and MAO-B), enzymes critical for the breakdown of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, noradrenaline, and adrenaline.
Third objective
Exploration of the compounds’ potential to cross blood-brain barrier and act in the central nervous system.
Our Team
Discover the people driving this project and the institutions they are affiliated with.
Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health
Zagreb, Croatia
Institute of Pathophysiology Faculty of Medicine
Ljubljana, Slovenia
Faculty of Food Technology Osijek
Osijek, Croatia
Normandie Univ, UNIROUEN, INSA Rouen CNRS, CARMeN (UMR 6064)
Rouen, France
The Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine Universidade de Lisboa
Lisbon, Portugal
News
A. Zandona at the 18th International Symposium on Cholinergic Mechanisms
As part of the BPaNDa project team, A. Zandona participated in the 18th International Symposium on Cholinergic Mechanisms (ISCM2026), held on 21–25 June 2026 in Montreal, Canada. T…

B-PaNDa team takes part in the 3rd EvaMobs Consortium Meeting
Five members of the BPaNDa project team took part in the 3rd EvaMobs Consortium Meeting, held in Madrid, Spain on 78 May 2026. The meeting was hosted by CNBCSIC, one of the EvaMobs…

B-PaNDa researchers meet the next generation of scientists at WISe
On 11 March 2026, the Faculty of Science in Zagreb hosted the WorkIn’ Science Career Day (WISe), bringing together students, researchers, academic institutions, and organizations from different scientific fields and career paths.

Contact
Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health
Ksaverska cesta 2, 10000 Zagreb
+385 (1) 4682 500
www.imi.hr