Quinazolin-4(3H)-one based agents bearing thiadiazole-urea: Synthesis and evaluation of anti-proliferative and antiangiogenic activity

New benzothiazole hybrids as potential VEGFR-2 inhibitors: design, synthesis, anticancer evaluation, and in silico study

A new series of 2-aminobenzothiazole hybrids linked to thiazolidine-2,4-dione 4a-e, 1,3,4-thiadiazole aryl urea 6a-d, and cyanothiouracil moieties 8a-d was synthesised. The in vitro antitumor effect of the new hybrids was assessed against three cancer cell lines, namely, HCT-116, HEPG-2, and MCF-7 using Sorafenib (SOR) as a standard drug. Among the tested compounds, 4a was the most potent showing IC50 of 5.61, 7.92, and 3.84 µM, respectively. Furthermore, compounds 4e and 8a proved to have strong impact on breast cancer cell line with IC50 of 6.11 and 10.86 µM, respectively. The three compounds showed a good safety profile towards normal WI-38 cells. Flow cytometric analysis of the three compounds in MCF-7 cells revealed that compounds 4a and 4c inhibited cell population in the S phase, whereas 8a inhibited the population in the G1/S phase. The most promising compounds were subjected to a VEGFR-2 inhibitory assay where 4a emerged as the best active inhibitor of VEGFR-2 with IC50 91 nM, compared to 53 nM for SOR. In silico analysis showed that the three new hybrids succeeded to link to the active site like the co-crystallized inhibitor SOR.

Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of 12-Aryl-11-hydroxy-5,6-dihydropyrrolo[2″,1″:3',4']pyrazino[1',2':1,5]pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyridazine-8(9H)-one Derivatives as Potential Cytotoxic Agents

In the present paper, a facile and efficient synthetic procedure has been applied to obtain dihydrodipyrrolo[1,2-a:2',1'-c]pyrazine-2,3-dicarboxylates (5a-s), which have subsequently gone through the cyclization in the presence of hydrazine hydrate to afford 12-aryl-11-hydroxy-5,6-dihydropyrrolo[2″,1″:3',4']pyrazino[1',2':1,5]pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyridazine-8(9H)-ones (7a-q). The molecular structures of these novel compounds were extensively examined through the analysis of spectroscopic data in combination with X-ray crystallography techniques. Following that, the in vitro cytotoxic activities of all derivatives against three human cancer cell lines (Panc-1, PC3, and MDA-MB-231) were comprehensively evaluated alongside the assessment on normal human dermal fibroblast (HDF) cells using the MTT assay. Among the compounds, the 3-nitrophenyl derivative (7m) from the second series showed the best antiproliferative activity against all tested cell lines, particularly against Panc-1 cell line, (IC50 = 12.54 μM), being nearly twice as potent as the standard drug etoposide. The induction of apoptosis and sub-G1 cell cycle arrest in Panc-1 cancer cells by compound 7m was confirmed through further assessment. Moreover, the inhibition of kinases and the induction of cellular apoptosis by compound 7m in Panc-1 cancer cells were validated using the Western blotting assay.

Quinazoline-based VEGFR-2 inhibitors as potential anti-angiogenic agents: A contemporary perspective of SAR and molecular docking studies

Angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels from the existing vasculature, is pivotal in the migration, growth, and differentiation of endothelial cells in normal physiological conditions. In various types of tumour microenvironments, dysregulated angiogenesis plays a crucial role in supplying oxygen and nutrients to cancerous cells, leading to tumour size growth. VEGFR-2 tyrosine kinase has been extensively studied as a critical regulator of angiogenesis; thus, inhibition of VEGFR-2 has been widely used for cancer treatments in recent years. Quinazoline nucleus is a privileged and versatile scaffold with a broad range of pharmacological activity, especially in the field of tyrosine kinase inhibitors with more than twenty small molecule inhibitors approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in the last two decades. As of now, the U.S. FDA has approved eleven small chemical inhibitors of VEGFR-2 for various types of malignancies, with a prime example being vandetanib, a quinazoline derivative, which is a multi targeted kinase inhibitor used for the treatment of late-stage medullary thyroid cancer. Despite of prosperous discovery and development of VEGFR-2 down regulator drugs, there still exists limitations in clinical efficacy, adverse effects, a high rate of clinical discontinuation and drug resistance. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the design and synthesis of more selective and effective inhibitors to tackle these challenges. Through the gathering of this review, we have strived to broaden the extent of our view over the entire scope of quinazoline-based VEGFR-2 inhibitors. Herein, we give an overview of the importance and advancement status of reported structures, highlighting the SAR, biological evaluations and their binding modes.

Thienopyrimidine-based agents bearing diphenylurea: Design, synthesis, and evaluation of antiproliferative and antiangiogenic activity

An important role has been considered for the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR-2) in the angiogenesis process, so that its inhibition is an important scientific way for cancer treatment. In this work, new thienopyrimidine derivatives were synthesized and evaluated. Compared with sorafenib, the majority of the target compounds had antiproliferative activity against the PC3, HepG2, MCF7, SW480, and HUVEC cell lines, especially 9h with IC₅₀ values of 4.5-15.1 μM, confirming the noticeable cytotoxic effects on the listed cell lines (PC3, HepG2, SW480, and HUVEC). Analyses by flow cytometry on SW480 and HUVEC cells revealed that 9n, 9k, 9h, and 9q led to apoptotic cell death. The result of the chick chorioallantoic membrane assay showed that 9h effectively reduced the number of corresponding blood vessels. Finally, the inhibitory effect on VEGFR-2 phosphorylation was considered as the outcome of Western blot analysis of compound 9h.

Design, synthesis, and cytotoxic evaluation of quinazoline derivatives bearing triazole-acetamides

A novel series of quinazoline-based agents bearing triazole-acetamides 8a-l were designed and synthesized. All the obtained compounds were tested for in vitro cytotoxic activities against three human cancer cell lines named HCT-116, MCF-7, and HepG2, as well as a normal cell line WRL-68 after 48 and 72 h. The results implied that quinazoline-oxymethyltriazole compounds exhibited moderate to good anticancer potential. The most potent derivative against HCT-116 was 8a (X = 4-OCH₃ and R = H) with IC₅₀ values of 10.72 and 5.33 μM after 48 and 72 h compared with doxorubicin with IC₅₀ values of 1.66 and 1.21 μM, respectively. The same trend was seen in the HepG2 cancerous cell line in which 8a recorded the best results with IC₅₀ values of 17.48 and 7.94 after 48 and 72 h, respectively. The cytotoxic analysis against MCF-7 showed that 8f with IC₅₀ = 21.29 μM (48 h) exhibited the best activity, while compounds 8k (IC₅₀ = 11.32 μM) and 8a (IC₅₀ = 12.96 μM), known as the most effective cytotoxic agents after 72 h. Doxorubicin as positive control exhibited IC₅₀ values of 1.15 and 0.82 μM after 48 and 72 h, respectively. Noteworthy, all derivatives showed limited toxicity against the normal cell line. Moreover, docking studies were also presented to understand the interactions between these novel derivatives and possible targets.

Synthesis, Molecular Docking, and Bioactivity Study of Novel Hybrid Benzimidazole Urea Derivatives: A Promising α-Amylase and α-Glucosidase Inhibitor Candidate with Antioxidant Activity

A novel series of benzimidazole ureas 3a-h were elaborated using 2-(1H-benzoimidazol-2-yl) aniline 1 and the appropriate isocyanates 2a-h. The antioxidant and possible antidiabetic activities of the target benzimidazole-ureas 3a-h were evaluated. Almost all compounds 3a-h displayed strong to moderate antioxidant activities. When tested using the three antioxidant techniques, TAC, FRAP, and MCA, compounds 3b and 3c exhibited marked activity. The most active antioxidant compound in this family was compound 3g, which had excellent activity using four different methods: TAC, FRAP, DPPH-SA, and MCA. In vitro antidiabetic assays against α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzymes revealed that the majority of the compounds tested had good to moderate activity. The most favorable results were obtained with compounds 3c, 3e, and 3g, and analysis revealed that compounds 3c (IC₅₀ = 18.65 ± 0.23 μM), 3e (IC₅₀ = 20.7 ± 0.06 μM), and 3g (IC₅₀ = 22.33 ± 0.12 μM) had good α-amylase inhibitory potential comparable to standard acarbose (IC₅₀ = 14.21 ± 0.06 μM). Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of 3c (IC₅₀ = 17.47 ± 0.03 μM), 3e (IC₅₀ = 21.97 ± 0.19 μM), and 3g (IC₅₀ = 23.01 ± 0.12 μM) on α-glucosidase was also comparable to acarbose (IC₅₀ = 15.41 ± 0.32 μM). According to in silico molecular docking studies, compounds 3a-h had considerable affinity for the active sites of human lysosomal acid α-glucosidase (HLAG) and pancreatic α-amylase (HPA), indicating that the majority of the examined compounds had potential anti-hyperglycemic action.

Design, synthesis and evaluation of novel tetrahydropyridothienopyrimidin-ureas as cytotoxic and anti-angiogenic agents

The novel derivatives of tetrahydropyridothienopyrimidine-based compounds have been designed and efficiently synthesized with good yields through seven steps reaction. The anticancer activity of compounds 11a-y has been evaluated against MCF-7, PC-3, HEPG-2, SW-480, and HUVEC cell lines by MTT assay. The target compounds showed IC₅₀ values between 2.81–29.6 μg/mL and were compared with sorafenib as a reference drug. Among them, compound 11n showed high cytotoxic activity against four out of five examined cell lines and was 14 times more selective against MRC5. The flow cytometric analysis confirmed the induction of apoptotic cell death by this compound against HUVEC and MCF-7 cells. In addition, 11n caused sub-G1 phase arrest in the cell cycle arrest. Besides, this compound induced anti-angiogenesis in CAM assay and increased the level of caspase-3 by 5.2 fold. The western-blot analysis of the most active compound, 11n, revealed the inhibition of VEGFR-2 phosphorylation. Molecular docking study also showed the important interactions for compound 11n.

Elaboration of novel urea bearing schiff bases as potent in vitro anticancer candidates with low in vivo acute oral toxicity

A novel series of urea Schiff base derivatives were synthesized via the condensation of o-phenylenediamine, naphthyl isocyanate and appropriate aryl aldehyde. The results of the in vitro cytotoxic activities of compounds 5a–h against cancer cells lines PC3, SKOV-3 and HeLa, revealed that almost all compounds exhibited good to moderate activities Compound 5g owing bromine atom at p-position displayed higher activity compared to homolog 5b possessing chlorine atom due to adequate diameter of bromine which is more favourable than chlorine for the inhibition activity. In addition, compound 5h is the best candidate of this series exhibiting excellent activity for three cancer cells lines. Compound 5h demonstrated also an excellent activity with IC50 value of 0.6±0.3μg/mL for prostate cancer cell line PC3 and it is considered more effective than the standard drug doxorubicin Dox (IC50 = 2.6±0.03μg/mL). The most active compound 5h displayed the best activity against ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3 with IC50 = 1.8±0.2μg/mL. This results are higher than clinically used drug Dox (IC50. 2.2±0.02μg/mL). The results of screening activities cytotoxic effect toward cervix cancer cell line HeLa, affirm that compound 5h manifest an activity with IC50 value of 2.2±0.4μg/mL comparable to Dox (IC50. 1.9±0.04μg/mL). In the current study, in vivo acute oral toxicity assessment of urea Schiff base hybrid compounds 5a – h indicated that there was no mortality on treated female mice during 14 days assessment test compared with the vehicle-treated group confirming the safety with LD50 greater than 2000 mg/kg. In the actual study, the results affirmed that compounds 5a–h manifested in vivo no toxicity to saint cells, the compounds 5b, 5g and 5h presented higher anticancer activities against three cancer cells which authorizes promoters to use them as candidate anticancer agents.