Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of sorafenib derivatives containing indole (ketone) semicarbazide analogs as antitumor agents

Recent Development in the Search for Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) Inhibitors based on the Indole Pharmacophore

The signal transduction and cell proliferation are regulated by the epidermal growth factor receptor. The proliferation of tumor cells, apoptosis, invasion, and angiogenesis is inhibited by the epidermal growth factor receptor. Thus, breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, cervical cancer, glioma, and bladder cancer can be treated by targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor. Although third-generation epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors are potent drugs, patients exhibit drug resistance after treatment. Thus, the search for new drugs is being continued. Among the different potent epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors, we have reviewed the indole-based inhibitors. We have discussed the structure-activity relationship of the compounds with the active sites of the epidermal growth factor receptor receptors, their synthesis, and molecular docking studies.

Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Indole-2-carboxamides as Potential Multi-Target Antiproliferative Agents

A small set of indole-based derivatives, IV and Va-I, was designed and synthesized. Compounds Va-i demonstrated promising antiproliferative activity, with GI₅₀ values ranging from 26 nM to 86 nM compared to erlotinib's 33 nM. The most potent antiproliferative derivatives-Va, Ve, Vf, Vg, and Vh-were tested for EGFR inhibitory activity. Compound Va demonstrated the highest inhibitory activity against EGFR with an IC₅₀ value of 71 ± 06 nM, which is higher than the reference erlotinib (IC₅₀ = 80 ± 05 nM). Compounds Va, Ve, Vf, Vg, and Vh were further tested for BRAF^V600E inhibitory activity. The tested compounds inhibited BRAF^V600E with IC₅₀ values ranging from 77 nM to 107 nM compared to erlotinib's IC₅₀ value of 60 nM. The inhibitory activity of compounds Va, Ve, Vf, Vg, and Vh against VEGFR-2 was also determined. Finally, in silico docking experiments attempted to investigate the binding mode of compounds within the active sites of EGFR, BRAF^V600E, and VEGFR-2.

Design, Synthesis, and Antiproliferative Activity of New 5-Chloro-indole-2-carboxylate and Pyrrolo[3,4-b]indol-3-one Derivatives as Potent Inhibitors of EGFRT790M/BRAFV600E Pathways

Mutant EGFR/BRAF pathways are thought to be crucial targets for the development of anticancer drugs since they are over-activated in several malignancies. We present here the development of a novel series of 5-chloro-indole-2-carboxylate 3a-e, 4a-c and pyrrolo[3,4-b]indol-3-ones 5a-c derivatives as potent inhibitors of mutant EGFR/BRAF pathways with antiproliferative activity. The cell viability assay results of 3a-e, 4a-c, and 5a-c revealed that none of the compounds tested were cytotoxic, and that the majority of those tested at 50 µM had cell viability levels greater than 87%. Compounds 3a-e, 4a-c, and 5a-c had significant antiproliferative activity with GI₅₀ values ranging from 29 nM to 78 nM, with 3a-e outperforming 4a-c and 5a-c in their inhibitory actions against the tested cancer cell lines. Compounds 3a-e were tested for EGFR inhibition, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 68 nM to 89 nM. The most potent derivative was found to be the m-piperidinyl derivative 3e (R = m-piperidin-1-yl), with an IC₅₀ value of 68 nM, which was 1.2-fold more potent than erlotinib (IC₅₀ = 80 nM). Interestingly, all the tested compounds 3a-e had higher anti-BRAF^V600E activity than the reference erlotinib but were less potent than vemurafenib, with compound 3e having the most potent activity. Moreover, compounds 3b and 3e showed an 8-fold selectivity index toward EGFR^T790M protein over wild-type. Additionally, molecular docking of 3a and 3b against BRAF^V600E and EGFR^T790M enzymes revealed high binding affinity and active site interactions compared to the co-crystalized ligands. The pharmacokinetics properties (ADME) of 3a-e revealed safety and good pharmacokinetic profile.

Pyrrole-based EGFR inhibitors for the treatment of NCSLC: Binding modes and SARs investigations

The treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has made substantial progress due to the rapid development of small molecule targeted therapy, with dramatically prolonged survival. As an effective drug for the treatment of NSCLC, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors are currently experiencing issues like severe adverse events and drug resistance. It is urgent to develop novel types of EGFR inhibitors to overcome the abovementioned limitations. Pyrrole always works well as a probe for the creation of novel medication candidates for hard-to-treat conditions like lung cancer. Although the design, synthesis, and biological assays of pyrrole derivatives have been reported, their inhibitory actions against the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) EGFR have not been in-depthly studied. This review highlights the small molecule EGFR inhibitors containing pyrrole heterocyclic pharmacophores in recent years, and the research on their mechanism, biological activity, and structure-activity relationship (SAR).

Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of novel EGFR inhibitors containing 5-chloro-3-hydroxymethyl-indole-2-carboxamide scaffold with apoptotic antiproliferative activity

New EGFR inhibitor series of fifteen 5-chloro-3-hydroxymethyl-indole-2-carboxamide derivatives has been designed, synthesized, and tested for antiproliferative activity against a panel of cancer cell lines. The results showed that p-substituted phenethyl derivatives 10, 11, 13, 15 and 17-19 showed superior antiproliferative activity compared to their m-substituted counterparts 12, 14, 16 and 20. Compounds 15, 16, 19 and 20 displayed promising EGFR inhibitory activity as well as an increase in caspase 3 levels. Compounds 15 and 19 increased caspase-8 and 9 levels, as well as inducing Bax and decreasing Bcl-2 protein levels. Compound 19 demonstrated cell cycle arrest at pre-G1 and G2/M phases. The results of the docking study into the active site of EGFR revealed strong fitting of the new compounds with higher binding affinities compared to erlotinib.

Unveiling the exceptional synergism-induced design of Co-Mg-Al layered triple hydroxides (LTHs) for boosting catalytic activity toward the green synthesis of indol-3-yl derivatives under mild conditions

The current study provides a novel insight into the role of synergism of the changes in Mg²⁺/ Al³⁺ in the best catalytic activity of indol-3-yl derivatives. A series of Co-Mg-Al layered triple hydroxides (LTHs) catalysts were produced by altering the Al³⁺/Mg²⁺ ratio with respect to Co²⁺. The physicochemical properties of LTHs were well characterized by ICP-AES, XRD, FTIR, FE-SEM, BET, Zeta-sizer, and VSM. The results show that the sample CMA4 (Co²⁺:Mg²⁺:Al³⁺ 2:4:4) is an exception to the physicochemical characteristics of the produced Co-Mg-Al LTHs, which is due to the synergism between the changes in Mg²⁺ and Al³⁺. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to report the synthesis of indol-3-yl derivatives from indole-3-carbaldehyde using Co-Mg-Al LTHs as highly efficient heterogeneous catalysts, which is an extremely appealing path. The selectivity of the synthesis was studied by condensing various nucleophiles through the one-pot method that established superior reactivity under mild conditions. Notably, the results show that the Co-Mg-Al LTHs system exhibited an extraordinarily catalytic activity, with the highest yield (98%) being obtained under the following optimal conditions: the concentration of Co-Mg-Al LTHs = 5 mol%, 30 min., water/ethanol as solvent. Furthermore, the reusable studies exhibited that the catalysts were found to be stable and reusable for up to six cycles without substantial loss of catalytic activity. Finally, a plausible reaction mechanism of the Co-Mg-Al LTHs system for indol-3-yl derivatives was put forward according to our comprehensive analysis. Our work illuminates a cheap and flexible strategy for the synthesis of indol-3-yl derivatives using Co-Mg-Al LTHs.