DNA cleavage by photolysis of aryl sulfoxides

Enediynes bearing polyfluoroaryl sulfoxide as new antiproliferative agents with dual targeting of microtubules and DNA

A novel series of enediynes possessing pentafluorophenylsulfoxide have been developed. The innovative compounds possess antiproliferative activity against a broad panel of human cancer cells originating from breast, blood, lung, kidney, colon, prostate, pancreas or skin with IC₅₀ ranging from 0.6 to 3.4 μM. The antiproliferative activity of enediynes in darkness is associated to their ability to compromise microtubule network. In addition, exposure to UV leads to double-stranded DNA cleavage caused by the newly synthesized molecules reducing further their IC₅₀ in nanomolar range against human tumor cells, including chemo-resistant pancreatic cancer cells. Taken together, the examined data demonstrate that enediynes possessing pentafluorosulfoxide are promising molecules in the cancer therapy.