Facile Installation of a Hydroxyalkyl Group into Hydroxyanthraquinones and Aminoanthraquinones through the Modified Marschalk Reaction

One-pot synthesis of 1,4-dihydroxy-2-((E)-1-hydroxy-4-phenylbut-3-enyl)anthracene-9,10-diones as novel shikonin analogs and evaluation of their antiproliferative activities

A series of shikonin analogs have been synthesized in a one-pot reaction of quinizarin with β,γ-unsaturated aldehydes in MeOH under mild conditions and investigated for their cytotoxicity against four cancer cell lines and one normal cell line. The synthesized compounds were found to be cytotoxic against HeLa cells with no apparent toxicity against normal cell line. Further modification led to the discovery of a novel tetracyclic anthraquinone (4b/4b') with potent cytotoxic activities against cervical, breast and pancreatic cancer cell lines with no significant effect on the growth of the control mammary epithelial cell line MCF-10. The good cytotoxicity and selectivity of compound 4b/4b' suggest that it could be a promising lead for further optimization.

Design and synthesis of novel hydroxyanthraquinone nitrogen mustard derivatives as potential anticancer agents via a bioisostere approach

A series of hydroxyanthraquinones having an alkylating N-mustard pharmacophore at 1'-position were synthesized via a bioisostere approach to evaluate their cytotoxicity against four tumor cell lines (MDA-MB-231, HeLa, MCF-7 and A549). These compounds displayed significant in vitro cytotoxicity against MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 cells, reflecting the excellent selectivity for the human breast cancer. Among them, compound 5k was the most cytotoxic with IC50 value of 0.263 nM and is more potent than DXR (IC50 = 0.294 nM) in inhibiting the growth of MCF-7 cells. The excellent cytotoxicity and good selectivity of compound 5k suggest that it could be a promising lead for further design and development of anticancer agents, especially for breast cancer.