The development of benzimidazoles as selective rho kinase inhibitors

Rho Kinase (ROCK) is a serine/threonine kinase whose inhibition could prove beneficial in numerous therapeutic areas. We have developed a promising class of ATP-competitive inhibitors based upon a benzimidazole scaffold, which show excellent potency toward ROCK (IC(50)<10nM). This report details the optimization of selectivity for ROCK over other related kinases such as Protein kinase A (PKA).