Vericiguat

The stimulation of sGC by Vericiguat is examined with a recombinant CHO cell line overexpressing rat sGC. Vericiguat stimulates the sGC reporter cell line concentration dependently with an EC50 of 1005 ± 145 nM. In the presence of the NO donor S-nitroso-N-acetyl-D,L-penicillamine (SNAP) (30 and 100 nM), the EC50 value shifts to 39.0 ± 5.1 and 10.6 ± 1.7 nM, respectively. In the presence of ODQ, pretreatment of the sGC reporter cell line with 10 μM ODQ for 3 h results in a significantly reduced efficacy of Vericiguat, with an EC50 of 256 ± 40 nM being observed.^[1]

Cells are plated in a volume of 25 μL on white 384-well Greiner Bio-One microplates and are cultured for 1 or 2 d in medium. Medium is removed, and cells are loaded for 3 h with calcium-free Tyrode-containing coelenterazine. Serial dilutions of the test compounds (including Vericiguat) in a volume of 10 μL in calcium-free Tyrode are applied to the cells for 6 min. Thereafter, 35 μL of Tyrode-containing calcium (final concentration: 3 mM) is added to the cells and the emitted light is measured for 40 s using a CCD camera in a light-tight box. The minimal effective concentration (MEC) is determined as the concentration where a ≥3-fold increase in the basal luminescence value is observed.

Vericiguat can maintain heart and kidney function in a model of hypertension-induced end-organ damage with substantially reduced overall mortality.^[1]