Substituted diaryl or diheteroaryl methans, ethers and amines having retinoid agonist, antagonist or inverse agonist type biological activity

A process of activating a retinoid receptor or binding to said retinoid receptor in a mammal in need thereof wherein said activating or binding to a retinoid receptor has a beneficial therapeutic effect, the process comprising the step of administering to said mammal an effective amount of a compound of the formula

• Y3(R4)—X—Y1(R1R2)—Z—Y2(R2)—A—B
• where Y1 is phenyl or naphthyl, said phenyl or naphthyl groups being substituted with an R1 group, and further substituted or unsubstituted with one or two R2 groups;
• R1 is C1-10alkyl, 1-adamantyl, 2-tetrahydropyranoxy, trialkylsilanyloxy where alkyl has up to 6 carbons, OH, alkoxy where the alkyl group has up to 10 carbons, alkylthio where the alkyl group has up to 10 carbons, or OCH2OC1-6alkyl;
• R2 is lower alkyl of 1 to 6 carbons, F, Cl, Br, I, CF3, CF2CF3, OH, OR3, NO2, N(R3)2, CN, N3, COR3, or NHCOR3, COOH, COOR3;
• X is S, SO, SO2, or O;
• Z is —C≡C—,
• —N═N—,
• —N(O)═N—,
• —N═N(O)—,
• —N═CR3—,
• —CR3═N,
• —(CR3═CR3)n— where n is an integer having the value 0-5,
• —CO—NR3—,
• —CS—NR3—,
• —NR3—CO,
• —NR3—CS,
• —COO—,
• —OCO—;
• —CSO—;
• —OCS—;
• —CO—CR3═CR3—;
• R3 is independently H or lower alkyl of 1 to 6 carbons;
• V2 is a phenyl or naphthyl group, said pheny or naphthyl groups being unsubstituted or substituted with one or two R2 groups, or
• when Z is —(CR3═CR3)n and n is 3, 4 or 5 then Y2 represents a direct valence bond between said (CR3═CR3)n group and B;
• Y3 is pheny or naphthyl, said pheny or naphthyl groups being unsubstituted or substituted with one to three R4 groups, where R4 is alkyl of 1 to 10 carbons, fluoro-substituted alkyl of 1 to 10 carbons, alkenyl of 2 to 10 carbons and having 1 to 3 double bonds, alkynyl having 2 to 10 carbons and 1 to 3 triple bonds, F, Cl, Br, I, NO2, CN, NR3, N3, COOH, COOC1-6alkyl;
• OH, SH, OC1-6alkyl, SC1-6alkyl;
• A is (CH2)q where q is 0-5, and
• B is COOH or COOR8, where R8 is an alkyl group of 1 to 10 carbons or (trimethylsilyl)alkyl where the alkyl group has 1 to 10 carbons, or a cycloalkyl group of 5 to 10 carbons, or R8 is phenyl or lower alkylphenyl, or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt of said compound.