Benzisothiazolyliminothiazolidin-4-ones with Chondroprotective Properties: Searching for Potent and Selective Inhibitors of MMP-13

Caring for cartilage: A potent and selective matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP-13) inhibitor has been discovered with a novel 2-benzisothiazolylimino-5-benzylidenethiazolidin-4-one scaffold. The structure–activity relationships of the three positional methoxybenzylidene isomers with respect to their chondroprotective effects was evaluated. Molecular modeling provided insight into the binding mode of these non-zinc-chelating (allosteric) inhibitors with MMP-13.