Synthesis, in vitro cytotoxicity and apoptosis inducing study of 2-aryl-3-nitro-2H-chromene derivatives as potent anti-breast cancer agents

Synthesis, molecular docking, and binding Gibbs free energy calculation of β-nitrostyrene derivatives: Potential inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease

The outbreak of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), has had a significant impact on human health and the economic development. SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease (3CLpro) is highly conserved and plays a key role in mediating the transcription of virus replication. It is an ideal target for the design and screening of anti-coronavirus drugs. In this work, seven β-nitrostyrene derivatives were synthesized by Henry reaction and β-dehydration reaction, and their inhibitory effects on SARS-CoV-2 3CL protease were identified by enzyme activity inhibition assay in vitro. Among them, 4-nitro-β-nitrostyrene (compound a) showed the lowest IC₅₀ values of 0.7297 μM. To investigate the key groups that determine the activity of β-nitrostyrene derivatives and their interaction mode with the receptor, the molecular docking using the CDOCKER protocol in Discovery Studio 2016 was performed. The results showed that the hydrogen bonds between β-NO₂ and receptor GLY-143 and the π-π stacking between the aryl ring of the ligand and the imidazole ring of receptor HIS-41 significantly contributed to the ligand activity. Furthermore, the ligand-receptor absolute binding Gibbs free energies were calculated using the Binding Affinity Tool (BAT.py) to verify its correlation with the activity of β-nitrostyrene 3CLpro inhibitors as a scoring function. The higher correlation(r²=0.6) indicates that the absolute binding Gibbs free energy based on molecular dynamics can be used to predict the activity of new β-nitrostyrene 3CLpro inhibitors. These results provide valuable insights for the functional group-based design, structure optimization and the discovery of high accuracy activity prediction means of anti-COVID-19 lead compounds.

Anticancer properties of arylchromenes and arylchromans: an overview

Cancers are a set of pathologies originated by cells that have the ability to divide and multiply uncontrollably, associated with the capacity to invade and colonize adjacent tissues. Chemotherapy is one of the main approaches of treatment for cancer patients. Despite of the numerous antineoplastic drugs available, cancer cannot be cured; particularly at the late stages deprived of any side effect. Arylchromenes and arylchromans are a group of small molecules, of natural or synthetic origin, of great interest as prototypes for the drug development, especially against cancer. In this chapter, we will present the antineoplastic activity studies of the most promising examples of these arylchromenes and arylchroman derivatives.

Cytotoxicity of synthetic derivatives against breast cancer and multi-drug resistant breast cancer cell lines: a literature-based perspective study

Cancer is the second most killer worldwide causing millions of people to lose their lives every year. In the case of women, breast cancer takes away the highest proportion of mortality rate than other cancers. Due to the mutation and resistance-building capacity of different breast cancer cell lines against conventional therapies, this death rate is on the verge of growth. New effective therapeutic compounds and treatment method is the best way to look out for in this critical time. For instance, new synthetic derivatives/ analogues synthesized from different compounds can be a ray of hope. Numerous synthetic compounds have been seen enhancing the apoptosis and autophagic pathway that directly exerts cytotoxicity towards different breast cancer cell lines. To cease the ever-growing resistance of multi-drug resistant cells against anti-breast cancer drugs (Doxorubicin, verapamil, tamoxifen) synthetic compounds may play a vital role by increasing effectivity, showing synergistic action. Many recent and previous studies have reported that synthetic derivatives hold potentials as an effective anti-breast cancer agent as they show great cytotoxicity towards cancer cells, thus can be used even vastly in the future in the field of breast cancer treatment. This review aims to identify the anti-breast cancer properties of several synthetic derivatives against different breast cancer and multi-drug-resistant breast cancer cell lines with their reported mechanism of action and effectivity.

In vitro evaluation of the anticancer activity of barbituric/thiobarbituric acid-based chromene derivatives

BACKGROUND

Cancer is one of the most important reasons for mortality worldwide. Several synthetic products have shown valuable efficiency as an anticancer medicines. Chromene derivatives have long been used as the promising compounds which are potent in inhibition of the growth of tumors.

METHODS AND RESULTS

In this study, we investigate an anticancer activity of barbituric/thiobarbituric acid-based chromene derivates. For this purpose, viability, antioxidant and apoptotic assays were conducted using three different cancer cell lines (A2780, MCF7, and A549). In most cases, the antiproliferative activity of barbituric acid-based derivatives was higher than that of thiobarbituric acid-based compounds. Among 14 compounds, compound 4g was the most potent one, which showed the highest effect on cells by increasing the accumulation of ROS (up to 540% increase), increasing the level of caspase-3 and caspase-9 (~ 35% increase), and decreasing the mitochondrial membrane potential (2.5 folds reduction). To characterize the type of cell death involved into our experiment Annexin V/PI double staining of compound 4g was performed. The results showed that the number of late apoptotic and/or necrotic cells (Ann V + /PI +) increased fourfold upon treatment with IC₅₀ concentration of 4g.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, the anti-proliferative activity of barbituric acid-based derivatives was higher than that of thiobarbituric acid compounds, and compound 4g can be introduced as a potential candidate to prevent various cancers.

Multiple strategies for the treatment of invasive breast carcinoma: A comprehensive prospective

In this review, we emphasize on evolving therapeutic strategies and advances in the treatment of breast cancer (BC). This includes small-molecule inhibitors under preclinical and clinical investigation, phytoconstituents with antiproliferative potential, targeted therapies as antibodies and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), vaccines as immunotherapeutic agents and peptides as a novel approach inhibiting the interaction of oncogenic proteins. We provide an update of molecules under different phases of clinical investigation which aid in the identification of loopholes or shortcomings that can be overcomed with future breast cancer research.

Synthesis, antiepileptic effects, and structure-activity relationships of α-asarone derivatives: In vitro and in vivo neuroprotective effect of selected derivatives

In the present study, we compared the antiepileptic effects of α-asarone derivatives to explore their structure-activity relationships using the PTZ-induced seizure model. Our research revealed that electron-donating methoxy groups in the 3,4,5-position on phenyl ring increased antiepileptic potency but the placement of other groups at different positions decreased activity. Besides, in allyl moiety, the optimal activity was reached with either an allyl or a 1-butenyl group in conjugation with the benzene ring. The compounds 5 and 19 exerted better neuroprotective effects against epilepsy in vitro (cell) and in vivo (mouse) models. This study provides valuable data for further exploration and application of these compounds as potential anti-seizure medicines.

Anticancer Activity of Ipomoea purpurea Leaves Extracts in Monolayer and Three-Dimensional Cell Culture

Cancer is a leading cause of death and a vital health care challenge in the world. Hence, this work was conducted to determine the in vitro anticancer property and also the molecular mechanism of aqueous and organic extracts of Ipomoea purpurea leaves in three human cancer cell lines, including A-549 (human lung cancer), HepG-2 (human liver cancer), MDA-MB-231 (human breast cancer), and MCF-10A (breast normal cell line). In vitro cytotoxic potential of organic extracts, such as hexane, chloroform, ethyl-acetate, methanol, and aqueous extract was examined using a standard (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazole)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) MTT method in both monolayer two-dimensional (2D) and spheroids multicellular three-dimensional (3D) cultures. The MTT assay data showed that methanol and chloroform extracts of I. purpurea leaves had the antiproliferative effect on lung and breast cancer cells with IC₅₀ of 53.62 ± 0.07 and 124.5 ± 0.01 µg/mL, respectively. The results of further examinations, such as dual acridine orange/ethidium bromide, Annexin V-FITC/PI, and caspase-3 colorimetric assay, confirmed that methanol and chloroform extracts of I. purpurea as the most potent cytotoxic extracts might contain a variety of phytochemicals, promoting apoptosis in lung and breast cancer cells. The present research findings suggested that methanolic extract of I. purpurea leaves induced S-phase cell cycle arrest and intrinsic pathway of apoptosis in A-549 lung cancer cells. The study further showed that I. purpurea could be a helpful candidate for cancer treatment.

Efficient synthesis, biological evaluation, and docking study of isatin based derivatives as caspase inhibitors

In this paper, a new series of isatin-sulphonamide based derivatives were designed, synthesised and evaluated as caspase inhibitors. The compounds containing 1-(pyrrolidinyl)sulphonyl and 2-(phenoxymethyl)pyrrolidin-1-yl)sulphonyl substitution at C5 position of isatin core exhibited better results compared to unsubstituted derivatives. According to the results of caspase inhibitory activity, compound 20d showed moderate inhibitory activity against caspase-3 and −7 in vitro compared to Ac-DEVD-CHO (IC₅₀ = 0.016 ± 0.002 μM). Among the studied compounds, some active inhibitors with IC_50s in the range of 2.33–116.91 μM were identified. The activity of compound 20d was rationalised by the molecular modelling studies exhibiting the additional van der Waals interaction of N-phenylacetamide substitution along with efficacious T-shaped π-π and pi-cation interactions. The introduction of compound 20d with good caspase inhibitory activity will help researchers to find more potent agents.

In vivo efficacy studies of chromene-based compounds in triple-negative breast cancer - A systematic review

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is considered the most aggressive breast cancer subtype, shows a poor response to the currently available therapy, and has no targeted therapy. Chemotherapy, surgery and radiation are the current therapeutic options to treat patients with TNBC, however, response to these therapeutic approaches is very poor and has significant side effects. Thus, there is an urgent need to search for new anti-TNBC agents, more effective and safer than current therapy. A wide range of synthetic chromene derivatives have been explored as anticancer agents in different cancer models, with promising results, and some of them already reached the clinical setting. Especially in TNBC, most of the available studies are conducted in in vitro models, with limited results in vivo. It is important the activity of any new compound that reaches clinical studies is supported by solid pre-clinical data. Thus, in the present study, we review and analyze the studies that use chromene-based compounds using in vivo models of TNBC. The results of this systematic review can add value to ongoing chromene-based studies.

A QSAR Study on the 4-Substituted Coumarins as Potent Tubulin Polymerization Inhibitors

Purpose: Despite the discovery and synthesis of several anticancer drugs, cancer is still a major life threatening incident for human beings after cardiovascular diseases. Toxicity, severe side effects, and drug resistance are serious problems of available commercial anticancer drugs. Coumarins are synthetic and natural heterocycles that show promising antiproliferative activities against various tumors. The aim of this research is to computationally study the coumarin derivatives in order to develop reliable quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) models for predicting their anticancer activities.

Methods: A data set of thirty one coumarin analogs with significant antiproliferative activities toward HepG2 cells were selected from the literature. The molecular descriptors for these compounds were calculated using Dragon, HyperChem, and ACD/Labs programs. Genetic algorithm (GA) accompanied by multiple linear regression (MLR) for simultaneous feature selection and model development was employed for generating the QSAR models.

Results: Based on the obtained results, the developed linear QSAR models with three and four descriptors showed good predictive power with r2 values of 0.670 and 0.692, respectively. Moreover, the calculated validation parameters for the models confirmed the reliability of the QSAR models.

Conclusion: The findings of the current study could be useful for the design and synthesis of novel anticancer drugs based on coumarin structure.

In-Vitro Anti-Proliferative, Apoptotic and Antioxidative Activities of Medicinal Herb Kalonji (Nigella sativa)

BACKGROUND

Natural product with apoptotic activity could serve as a potential new source for anti-cancer medicine. Numerous phytochemicals from plants have shown to exert antineoplastic effects via programmed cell death (apoptosis). Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in prosperous countries. The subject study was intended to evaluate the anticancer properties of Kalonji extracts against cancer cell lines HeLa and HepG2 and normal cell lines BHK and VERO were used as normal controls.

MATERIALS & METHODS

For the evaluation of anti-proliferative effects, cell viability and cell death in all groups of cells were evaluated via MTT, crystal violet and trypan blue assays. For the evaluation of angiogenesis, Immunocytochemistry and ELISA of VEGF were done. Immunocytochemistry and ELISA of Annexin-V and p53 were performed for the estimation of apoptosis in all groups of cells. Furthermore, LDH assay, antioxidant enzymes activity (GSH, APOX, CAT and SOD) and RT-PCR with proliferative and apoptotic markers along with internal control were also performed. Cancer cells of both cell lines HepG2 and HeLa cells showed reduced viability, angiogenesis and proliferation with increased apoptosis when treated with Kalonji extracts. Whereas anti-oxidative enzymes show enhanced levels in treated cancer cells as compared to untreated ones.

CONCLUSION

It was observed that Kalonji extracts have the ability to induce apoptosis and improve the antioxidant status of HeLa and HepG2 cells. They can also inhibit the proliferation and angiogenesis in both these cancer cell lines.

Synthetic Diversity from a Versatile and Radical Nitrating Reagent

We leverage the slow liberation of nitrogen dioxide from a newly discovered, inexpensive succinimide-derived reagent to allow for the C-H diversification of alkenes and alkynes. Beyond furnishing a library of aryl β-nitroalkenes, this reagent provides unparalleled access to β-nitrohydrins and β-nitroethers. Detailed mechanistic studies strongly suggest that a mesolytic N-N bond fragmentation liberates a nitryl radical. Using in situ photo-sensitized, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, we observed direct evidence of a nitryl radical in solution by nitrone spin-trapping. To further exhibit versatility of N-nitrosuccinimide under photoredox conditions, the late-stage diversification of an extensive number of C-H partners to prepare isoxazolines and isoxazoles is presented. This approach allows for the formation of an in situ nitrile oxide from a ketone partner, the presence of which is detected by the formation of the corresponding furoxan when conducted in the absence of a dipolarophile. This 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition with nitrile oxides and alkenes or alkynes proceeds in a single-operational step using a mild, regioselective, and general protocol with broad chemoselectivity.

Pharmacologic potential of new nitro-compounds as antimicrobial agents against nosocomial pathogens: design, synthesis, and in vitro effectiveness

Nosocomial infections are an important cause of morbi-mortality worldwide. The increase in the rate of resistance to conventional drugs in these microorganisms has stimulated the search for new therapeutic options. The nitro moiety (NO₂) is an important pharmacophore of molecules with high anti-infective activity. We aimed to synthesize new nitro-derivates and to evaluate their antibacterial and anti-Candida potential in vitro. Five compounds [3-nitro-2-phenylchroman-4-ol (3); 3-nitro-2-phenyl-2H-chromene (4a); 3-nitro-2-(4-chlorophenyl)-2H-chromene (4b); 3-nitro-2-(4-fluorophenyl)-2H-chromene (4c), and 3-Nitro-2-(2,3-dichlorophenyl)-2H-chromene (4d)] were efficiently synthesized by Michael-aldol reaction of 2-hydroxybenzaldehyde with nitrostyrene, resulting in one β-nitro-alcohol (3) and four nitro-olefins (4a-4d). The antibacterial and anti-Candida potentials were evaluated by assaying minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC), and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). Mono-halogenated nitro-compounds (4b and 4c) showed anti-staphylococcal activity with MIC values of 15.6-62.5 μg/mL and MBC of 62.5 μg/mL. However, the activity against Gram-negative strains was showed to be considerably lower and our data suggests that this effect was associated with the outer membrane. Furthermore, nitro-compounds 4c and 4d presented activity against Candida spp. with MIC values ranging from 7.8-31.25 μg/mL and MFC of 15.6-500 μg/mL. In addition, these compounds were able to induce damage in fungal cells increasing the release of intracellular material, which was associated with actions on the cell wall independent of quantitative changes in chitin and β-glucan. Together, these findings show that nitro-compounds can be exploited as anti-staphylococcal and anti-Candida prototypes.

Design, synthesis, biological evaluation, and molecular dynamics of novel cholinesterase inhibitors as anti-Alzheimer's agents

A series of novel chroman-4-one derivatives were designed and synthesized successfully with good to excellent yield (3a-l). In addition, the obtained products were evaluated for their cholinesterase (ChE) inhibitory activities. The results show that among the various synthesized compounds, analogs bearing the piperidinyl ethoxy side chain with 4-hydroxybenzylidene on the 3-positions of chroman-4-one (3l) showed the most potent activity with respect to acetylcholinesterase (anti-AChE activity; IC₅₀  = 1.18 μM). In addition, the structure-activity relationship was studied and the results revealed that the electron-donating groups on the aryl ring of the 3-benzylidene fragment (3k, 3l) resulted in the designed compounds to be more potent ChE inhibitors in comparison with those having electron-withdrawing groups (3h). In this category, the strongest ChE inhibition was found for the compound containing piperidine as cyclic amine, and a hydroxyl group (for AChE, compound 3l) and fluoro group (for butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE, compound 3i) on the para-position of the aryl ring of the benzylidene group. The molecular docking and dynamics studies of the most potent compounds (3i and 3l against BuChE and AChE, respectively) demonstrated remarkable interactions with the binding pockets of the ChE enzymes and confirmed the results obtained through in vitro experiments.

Design, Synthesis and Anticancer Evaluation of Novel Series of Indibulin Analogues

Background:

Cancer is an important cause of human death worldwide. During the last decades, many anticancer agents with anti-tubulin mechanism have been synthesized or extracted from nature and some of them also entered clinical use. Indibulin is one of the most potent tubulin polymerization inhibitors with minimal peripheral neuropathy, which is a big problem by some of the antimitotic agents such as taxanes and vinka alkaloids. With respect to this giant benefit, herein we decided to design and synthesize novel indibulin related compounds and investigate their anticancer activity against HT-29, Caco-2 and T47-D cancerous cell lines as well as NIH-T3T as normal cell line.

Objective:

The aim of this study was to synthesize new anti-cancer agents and evaluates their cytotoxic activity on diverse cancerous and normal cell lines.

Method:

Target compounds were synthesized in multistep reaction and cytotoxic activity was investigated by MTT cell viability assay.

Results:

Herein, nine novel target compounds were synthesized in moderate to good yield. Some of the compounds exerted good cytotoxic activity against cancerous cell lines. Annexin V/PI staining showed that compound 4g could induce apoptosis and necrosis in HT-29 cell line.

Conclusion:

It is valuable to do further investigation on compound 4g which showed the highest activity against HT-29 and Caco-2 (IC50 values are 6.9 and 7 &µM respectively). Also, synthesis of new derivatives of current synthesized compounds is suggested.

Stimulation of pulmonary vagal C-fibers by trans-4-methyl-β-nitrostyrene induces bradycardiac and depressor reflex in rats: Role of vanilloid TRPV1 receptors

Previously, we showed that the synthetic nitroderivative trans-4-methyl-β-nitrostyrene (T4MeN) induced vasorelaxant effects in rat isolated aortic rings. Here, we investigated the mechanisms underlying the cardiovascular effects of T4MeN in normotensive rats. In pentobarbital-anesthetized rats, intravenous (i.v.) injection of T4MeN (0.03-0.5 mg/kg) induced a rapid (onset time of 1-2 s) and dose-dependent bradycardia and hypotension. These cardiovascular responses to T4MeN were abolished by bilateral cervical vagotomy or selective blockade of neural conduction of vagal C-fiber afferents by perineural treatment of both cervical vagus nerves with capsaicin. Hypotension and bradycardia were also recorded when T4MeN was directly injected in the right, but not into the left ventricle. Furthermore, they were significantly reduced by i.v. pretreatment with capsazepine but remained unaltered by ondansetron or suramin. In conscious rats, the dose-dependent hypotension and bradycardia evoked by T4MeN were abolished by i.v. methylatropine pretreatment. In conclusion, bradycardiac and depressor responses induced by T4MeN has a vago-vagal reflex origin resulting from the vagal pulmonary afferents stimulation. The transduction mechanism seems to involve the activation of vanilloid TRPV₁, but not purinergic (P2X) or 5-HT₃ receptors located on vagal pulmonary sensory nerves.

Base mediated green synthesis of enantiopure 2-C-spiro-glycosyl-3-nitrochromenes

A novel green synthetic methodology has been developed to obtain enantiopure (2S)-2-C-spiro-glycosyl-3-nitrochromenes following the oxa-Michael-aldol condensation reaction of sugar derived 3-C-vinyl nitro olefins with substituted salicylaldehydes using Et3N as a base under neat conditions at rt-40 °C. The stereochemistry of the product is confirmed by a single crystal X-ray study. Several advantages are associated with this protocol such as cost effectiveness, easy accessibility, short reaction time, high yields, wide substrate scope and high enantiopurity.

MicroRNA‑424 serves an anti‑oncogenic role by targeting cyclin‑dependent kinase 1 in breast cancer cells

The aim of the present study was to define the function of microRNA‑424‑5p (miR‑424) in breast cancer cells. The present study investigated the level and the potential function of miR‑424 in breast cancer by reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction assays. miR‑424 expression was decreased in the majority of human breast cancer specimens and cell lines used in the present study. The MTT assay, plate colony formation assay and flow cytometry analyses were used to characterize the function of miR‑424 in two types of breast cancer cell lines. Upregulation of miR‑424 inhibited cellular proliferation and regulated the cell cycle by arresting cells in the G2/M cell phase. The dual‑luciferase reporter assay was used to confirm the direct association between miR‑424 and cyclin‑dependent kinase 1 (CDK1). Silencing of CDK1 expression by CDK1 short interfering RNA also significantly suppressed cell proliferation and arrested cells in the G2/M cell phase. The results of the present study indicated that miR‑424 can suppress cell proliferation and arrest cells in G2/M cell phase by negatively regulating CDK1 mRNA in human breast cancer, possibly through the Hippo pathway and the extracellular signal‑regulated kinase pathway. The results of the present study provided novel evidence for the role of miR‑424 in breast cancer.

Design, Synthesis and In vitro Cytotoxicity of New 1,2,3-triazol- and Nitrostyrene Hybrids as Potent Anticancer Agents

Background:

A new series of 1,2,3-triazol-nitrostyrene derivatives was designed, synthesized, and evaluated for cytotoxic activity against Hep-2 and L929 cell lines. </P><P> Methods: The synthetic procedure started from the functionalization of 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde with propargyl bromide and a subsequent click reaction to give 1,2,3-triazole derivatives. Then, the reaction of the mentioned derivatives with nitromethane led to the formation of the title compounds in excellent yields.

Results:

Most of the compounds exhibited better cytotoxic activity with respect to the standard drug 5-fluorouracil. Among them, (E)-1-(3,4-dichlorobenzyl)-4-((4-(2-nitrovinyl)phenoxy)methyl)-1H- 1,2,3-triazole 6i (IC50 = 4.66 &#177; 1.3 &#181;M) against the Hep-2 cell line and (E)-1-(2,3-dichlorobenzoyl)- 4-((4-(2-nitrovinyl)phenoxy)methyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazole 6g (IC50 = 5.18 &#177; 0.8 &#181;M) against the L929 cell line exhibited the best cytotoxic effects.

Conclusion:

Moreover, the acridine orange/ethidium bromide double staining technique showed that the most potent compounds 6i and 6g could induce apoptosis in studied cancer cell lines.

In-vitro evaluation of apoptotic effect of OEO and thymol in 2D and 3D cell cultures and the study of their interaction mode with DNA

Oliveria decumbens is an Iranian endemic plant used extensively in traditional medicine. Recently, some studies have been performed on biological effects of Oliveria essential oil (OEO). However, to our knowledge, the anticancer activity of OEO has not been reported. Based on our GC/MS analysis, the basic ingredients of OEO are thymol, carvacrol, p-cymene and γ-terpinene. Therefore, we used OEO and its main component, thymol, to explore their effects on cell growth inhibition and anticancer activity. Despite having a limited effect on L929 normal cells, OEO/thymol induced cytotoxicity in MDA-MB231 breast cancer monolayers (2D) and to a lesser extent in MDA-MB231 spheroids (3D). Flow cytometry, caspase-3 activity assay in treated monolayers/spheroids and also fluorescence staining and DNA fragmentation in treated monolayers demonstrated apoptotic death mode. Indeed, OEO/thymol increased the Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) level leading to mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP, ΔΨm) loss, caspase-3 activation and DNA damage caused S-phase cell cycle arrest. Furthermore, immunoblotting studies revealed the activation of intrinsic and maybe extrinsic apoptosis pathways by OEO/thymol. Additionally, in-vitro experiments, indicated that OEO/thymol interacts with DNA via minor grooves confirmed by docking method. Altogether, our reports underlined the potential of OEO to be considered as a new candidate for cancer therapy.

Identification and anti-cancer activity in 2D and 3D cell culture evaluation of an Iranian isolated marine microalgae Picochlorum sp. RCC486

PURPOSE

Cancer disease is the second cause of death in the world. Now a days, high percentage of drugs, which are involved in treatment of cancers, have natural origin. Introduction of microalgae strains as anti-cancer drugs origin is a valuable approach for cancer therapy.

METHODS

In the present study we describe the isolation, characterization, and anti-proliferative activity of a new microalga strain (Picochlorum sp. RCC486) from Iran. The cytotoxic activity of four different algal extracts including methanol, ethyl acetate, chloroform, and hexane were evaluated against MDA-MB-231, MCF-7, Hep-G2, and A-549 cell liens. Cell viability was determined using MTT assay in both monolayer and spheroids 3D cultures. The apoptosis was confirmed by different methods such as AO/EB and Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining, caspase-3 colorimetric assay, ROS and MMP assay.

RESULTS

The results of MTT assay and fluorescent double staining confirmed that methanol and ethyl acetate extracts showed the best cytotoxic activity against the cancer cell lines. The production of ROS, caspase-3 activity and depolarized MMP were quite significant in MDA-MB-231 cell line treated with methanol and ethyl acetate extracts.

CONCLUSION

In this research we revealed that cytotoxicity and apoptotic effects of the methanol and ethyl acetate extracts in human cancer cells make them good candidates for further pharmacological studies to discover effective drugs for cancer therapy. Graphical abstract The present study describes the isolation, characterization, and anti-proliferative activity of different extracts of a new microalga strain (Picochlorum sp. RCC486) from Iran. The antiproliferative and apoptosis inducing activity of ethyl acetate and methanol extracts with high content of phenol and carotenoid make them as good candidates for further pharmacological studies to discover effective drugs for cancer therapy.

Design, synthesis and cytotoxicity evaluation of indibulin analogs

Indibulin is one of the most potent tubulin polymerization inhibitors with minimal peripheral neuropathy. The design and synthesis of new indibulin analogs were carried out in order to investigate their anti-cancer activity. The target compounds 4a–i were synthesized in multistep reactions starting with the related indole derivatives. Compound 4f shows the highest cytotoxic activity on HT-29 and Caco-2 cell lines with the respective half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of 5.1 μm and 7.3 μm. In the case of the T47-D cell line, compound 4c exerts the best cytotoxic activity with an IC50 value of 11.5 μm. In the cell cycle analysis on HT-29 cells, compound 4f at 5.1 μm showed an increase in the percentage of cells in the sub-G1 phase. Altogether, nine target compounds were synthesized and characterized by infrared spectroscopy (IR), proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR), carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance (13C NMR), mass spectrometry (MS) and elemental analysis. Some of the compounds show good cytotoxic activity against cancerous cell lines.

Synthesis of 2H-Chromene-4-Carbonitriles Via Trimethylsilyl Cyanide

A number of 2-aryl-2 H-chromene-4-carbonitriles were synthesised by cyanation of 2-aryl-3-nitro-2 H-chromenes using trimethylsilyl cyanide (TMSCN) in the presence of tetrabutylammonium fluoride (TBAF) in moderate yields via a Michael addition/elimination pathway. The structures of all the products were characterised thoroughly by NMR, IR and HRMS spectroscopy and X-ray crystallographic analysis.

Novel quinazolin-4(3H)-one linked to 1,2,3-triazoles: Synthesis and anticancer activity

In this work, a wide range of novel quinazolin-4(3H)-one linked to 1,2,3-triazoles was designed, synthesized, and evaluated against a panel of three human breast (MDA-MB-231, MCF-7, T-47D), lung (A549), and prostate (PC3) cancer cell lines. Our results revealed that the anticancer activity of the synthesized compounds was selectively affected by the presence of methoxy group on the linker between quinazolinone and 1,2,3-triazole moieties. According to the calculated IC₅₀ values, compounds 6q, 6w, and 6x showed good cytotoxicity against breast cancer cell lines even more effective than the reference drug, etoposide. Compounds 6q and 6u were found to be potent compounds against A549, non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), comparing with erlotinib. Also, the morphological analysis by acridine orange/ethidium bromide double staining test and flow cytometry analysis indicated that potent compounds induced apoptosis in human cancer cell lines. Molecular docking studies were performed to clarify the inhibition mode of compounds 6g, 6u, 6w, and 6x over the EGFR active site. The most promising compounds, 6q and 6u, possessing 3-methoxy group were well oriented to the gatekeeper hydrophobic pocket of EGFR active site and interact well with Ala719, Val702, and Leu820 through hydrophobic interaction.

Identification of (1S,4S)-2,5-diazabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane-dithiocarbamate-nitrostyrene hybrid as potent antiproliferative and apoptotic inducing agent against cervical cancer cell lines

The present study seeks to describe the design and synthesis of six new Michael adducts of (1S,4S)-2,5-diazabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane-dithiocarbamate with nitrostyrenes and their in vitro antiproliferative activity against human cervical cancer cell lines [HeLa (HPV 18 positive), CaSki (HPV 16 positive) and ViBo (HPV negative) cervical cancer cell lines]. Virtual screening of the physicochemical properties of all compounds have also been presented. All the compounds exploited significant antiproliferative activity on the three cervical cancer cell lines. Compound 8a was found to be most potent, displaying in vitro antiproliferative activity against HeLa, CaSki and ViBo cervical cancer cell lines superior to Cisplatin and Paclitaxel with IC₅₀ values 0.99 ± 0.007, 2.36 ± 0.016 and 0.73 ± 0.002 μM respectively. In addition, compound 8a did not trigger the necrosis cell death to the test cancer cell lines. Further mechanistic study revealed that compound 8a could inhibit the cancer cell proliferation by inducing apoptosis through caspase-3 activation. Moreover, cell cycle analysis indicated that compound 8a could arrest the cell cycle at the G1 phase for HeLa and CaSki cancer cells. At the predetermined IC₅₀ values on cancer cells, compound 8a did not induce any necrotic (cytotoxic) death to the normal human lymphocytes. In the present design, (1S,4S)-2,5-diazabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane system was found to be superior than the piperazine counterpart 11.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 4-amino-5-cinnamoylthiazoles as chalcone-like anticancer agents

A series of 4-amino-5-cinnamoylthiazoles 3a-p were designed and synthesized as chalcone-like anticancer agents. The synthesized derivatives 3a-p were evaluated for their in vitro antiproliferative activities against three different human cancer cell lines including MCF-7, HepG2 and SW480. Most of compounds could significantly prevent proliferation of tested cell lines. In particular, the pyrrolidine derivative 3e namely (E)-1-(4-amino-2-(pyrrolidin-1-yl)thiazol-5-yl)-3-(2,4-dichlorophenyl)prop-2-en-1-one showed promising activity, especially against HepG2 cells (IC₅₀ = 10.6 μg/ml). Flow cytometric analyses revealed that the prototype compound 3e can prevent the proliferation of HepG2 cells by blockade of the cell cycle at the G2 phase and induction of apoptosis.

Current research on anti-breast cancer synthetic compounds

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer for females and its incidence tends to increase year by year.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of 3',4',5'-trimethoxy flavonoid benzimidazole derivatives as potential anti-tumor agents

A series of 3',4',5'-trimethoxy flavonoids with benzimidazole linked by different chain alkanes have been designed and synthesized. The potential activity of these compounds as anti-tumor agents was evaluated by cytotoxicity assay in MGC-803 (human gastric cancer), MCF-7 (human breast cancer), HepG-2 (human hepatoma) and MFC (mouse gastric cancer) tumor cell lines. Among them, compound 15 7-(3-(2-chloro-1H-benzo[d]imidazol-1-yl)propoxy)-2-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-4H-chromen-4-one displayed the most potent antiproliferative activity, with IC₅₀ values of 20.47 ± 2.07, 43.42 ± 3.56, 35.45 ± 2.03 μM and 23.47 ± 3.59 μM, respectively. The flow cytometry (FCM) results showed that compound 15 caused the cell cycle to be arrested in G1 phase and induced apoptosis of MFC cells in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, compound 15 exhibited a significant inhibitory effect on tumor growth in vivo. All the results outlined the great potential of compound 15 for further exploitation as anti-tumor agent.

Anti-Inflammatory Potential of 1-Nitro-2-Phenylethylene

Inflammation is a reaction of the host to infectious or sterile stimuli and has the physiological purpose of restoring tissue homeostasis. However, uncontrolled or unresolved inflammation can lead to tissue damage, giving rise to a plethora of chronic inflammatory diseases, including metabolic syndrome and autoimmunity pathologies with eventual loss of organ function. Beta-nitrostyrene and its derivatives are known to have several biological activities, including anti-edema, vasorelaxant, antiplatelet, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer. However, few studies have been carried out regarding the anti-inflammatory effects of this class of compounds. Thereby, the aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of 1-nitro-2-phenylethene (NPe) using in vitro and in vivo assays. Firstly, the potential anti-inflammatory activity of NPe was evaluated by measuring TNF-α produced by human macrophages stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). NPe at non-toxic doses opposed the inflammatory effects induced by LPS stimulation, namely production of the inflammatory cytokine TNF-α and activation of NF-κB and ERK pathways (evaluated by phosphorylation of inhibitor of kappa B-alpha [IκB-α] and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 [ERK1/2], respectively). In a well-established model of acute pleurisy, pretreatment of LPS-challenged mice with NPe reduced neutrophil accumulation in the pleural cavity. This anti-inflammatory effect was associated with reduced activation of NF-κB and ERK1/2 pathways in NPe treated mice as compared to untreated animals. Notably, NPe was as effective as dexamethasone in both, reducing neutrophil accumulation and inhibiting ERK1/2 and IκB-α phosphorylation. Taken together, the results suggest a potential anti-inflammatory activity for NPe via inhibition of ERK1/2 and NF-κB pathways on leukocytes.