2-hydroxymethyl-3,4,5-trihydroxy-1-(4-pentlyoxybenzyl) piperidine as glucosylceramide synthase (GCS)

The present invention relates to the compound 3,4,5-piperidinetriol, 2-(hydroxymethyl)-1-[(4-(pentyloxy)phenyl)methyl]-, (2S,3S,4R,5S), or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt or prodrug thereof, which is useful as an inhibitor of glucosylceramide synthase. The compounds of the Invention are useful for treating various glycolipid storage diseases, such as Gaucher's disease, Sandhoff's disease, Tay-Sacs disease, Fabry disease, and GM1 gangliosidosis; glycolipid accumulation disorders, such as Niemann-Pick disease, mucopolysaccharidoses, mucolipidosis type IV and α-mannosidosis; various cancers that involve abnormal glycolipid synthesis; and various infectious diseases that involve cell surface glycolipids as receptors for the infectious organisms or for their toxins; as well as a variety of other disorders involving glycolipid synthesis, including neuronal disorders, inflammatory diseases, obesity, and the like.