Camptothecin structure simplification elaborated new imidazo[2,1-b]quinazoline derivative as a human topoisomerase I inhibitor with efficacy against bone cancer cells and colon adenocarcinoma.

Camptothecin is a pentacyclic natural alkaloid that inhibits the hTop1 enzyme involved in DNA transcription and cancer cell growth. Camptothecin structure pitfalls prompted us to design new congeners using a structure simplification strategy to reduce the ring extension number from pentacyclic to tetracyclic while maintaining potential stacking of the new compounds with the DNA base pairs at the Top1-mediated cleavage complex and aqueous solubility, as well as minimizing compound-liver toxicity. The principal axis of this study was the verification of hTop1 inhibiting activity as a possible mechanism of action and the elaboration of new simplified inhibitors with improved pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic profiling using three structure panels (A-C) of (isoquinolinoimidazoquinazoline), (imidazoquinazoline), and (imidazoisoquinoline), respectively. DNA relaxation assay identified five compounds as hTop1 inhibitors belonging to the imidazoisoquinolines 3a,b, the imidazoquinazolines 12, and the isoquinolinoimidazoquinazolines 7a,b. In an MTT cytotoxicity assay against different cancer cell lines, compound 12 was the most potent against HOS bone cancer cells (IC50 = 1.47 µM). At the same time, the other inhibitors had no detectable activity against any cancer cell type. Compound (12) demonstrated great penetrating power in the HOS cancer cells' 3D-multicellular tumor spheroid model. Bioinformatics research of the hTop1 gene revealed that the TP53 cell proliferative gene is in the network of hTop1. The finding is confirmed empirically using the gene expression assay that proved the increase in p53 expression. The impact of structure simplification on compound 12 profile, characterized by the absence of acute oral liver toxicity when compared to Doxorubicin as a standard inhibitor, the lethal dose measured on Swiss Albino female mice and reported at LD50 = 250 mg/kg, and therapeutic significance in reducing colon adenocarcinoma tumor volume by 75.36 % after five weeks of treatment with compound 12. The molecular docking solutions of the active CPT-based derivative 12 and the inactive congener 14 into the active site of hTop1 and the activity cliffing of such MMP directed us to recommend the addition of HBD and HBA variables to compound 12 imidazoquinazoline core scaffold to enhance the potency via hydrogen bond formation with the major groove amino acids (Asp533, Lys532) as well as maintaining the hydrogen bond with the minor groove amino acid Arg364.

Design, Synthesis, Computational Investigations, and Antitumor Evaluation of N-Rhodanine Glycosides Derivatives as Potent DNA Intercalation and Topo II Inhibition against Cancer Cells.

Nitrogen and sulfur glycosylation was carried out via the reaction of rhodanine (1) with α-acetobromoglucose 3 under basic conditions. Deacetylation of the protected nitrogen nucleoside 4 was performed with CH3ONa in CH3OH without cleavage of the rhodanine ring to afford the deprotected nitrogen nucleoside 6. Further, deacetylation of the protected sulfur nucleoside 5 was performed with CH3ONa in CH3OH with the cleavage of the rhodanine ring to give the hydrolysis product 7. The protected nitrogen nucleosides 11a-f were produced by condensing the protected nitrogen nucleoside 4 with the aromatic aldehydes 10a-f in C2H5OH while using morpholine as a secondary amine catalyst. Deacetylation of the protected nitrogen nucleosides 11a-f was performed with NaOCH3/CH3OH without cleavage of the rhodanine ring to afford the deprotected nitrogen nucleosides 12a-f. NMR spectroscopy was used to designate the anomers' configurations. To examine the electrical and geometric properties derived from the stable structure of the examined compounds, molecular modeling and DFT calculations using the B3LYP/6-31+G (d,p) level were carried out. The quantum chemical descriptors and experimental findings showed a strong connection. The IC50 values for most compounds were very encouraging when evaluated against MCF-7, HepG2, and A549 cancer cells. Interestingly, IC50 values for 11a, 12b, and 12f were much lower than those for Doxorubicin (7.67, 8.28, 6.62 µM): (3.7, 8.2, 9.8 µM), (3.1, 13.7, 21.8 µM), and (7.17, 2.2, 4.5 µM), respectively. Against Topo II inhibition and DNA intercalation, when compared to Dox (IC50 = 9.65 and 31.27 µM), compound 12f showed IC50 values of 7.3 and 18.2 µM, respectively. In addition, compound 12f induced a 65.6-fold increase in the rate of apoptotic cell death in HepG2 cells, with the cell cycle being arrested in the G2/M phase as a result. Additionally, it upregulated the apoptosis-mediated genes of P53, Bax, and caspase-3,8,9 by 9.53, 8.9, 4.16, 1.13, and 8.4-fold change, while it downregulated the Bcl-2 expression by 0.13-fold. Therefore, glucosylated Rhodanines may be useful as potential therapeutic candidates against cancer because of their topoisomerase II and DNA intercalation activity.

Design, synthesis, molecular modelling and antitumor evaluation of S-glucosylated rhodanines through topo II inhibition and DNA intercalation.

In the present study, 5-arylidene rhodanine derivatives 3a-f, N-glucosylation rhodanine 6, S-glucosylation rhodanine 7, N-glucoside rhodanine 8 and S-glucosylation 5-arylidene rhodanines 13a-c were synthesised and screened for cytotoxicity against a panel of cancer cells with investigating the effective molecular target and mechanistic cell death. The anomers were separated by flash column chromatography and their configurations were assigned by NMR spectroscopy. The stable structures of the compounds under study were modelled on a molecular level, and DFT calculations were carried out at the B3LYP/6-31 + G (d,p) level to examine their electronic and geometric features. A good correlation between the quantum chemical descriptors and experimental observations was found. Interestingly, compound 6 induced potent cytotoxicity against MCF-7, HepG2 and A549 cells, with IC50 values of 11.7, 0.21, and 1.7 µM, compared to Dox 7.67, 8.28, and 6.62 µM, respectively. For the molecular target, compound 6 exhibited topoisomerase II inhibition and DNA intercalation with IC50 values of 6.9 and 19.6 µM, respectively compared to Dox (IC50 = 9.65 and 31.27 µM). Additionally, compound 6 treatmnet significantly activated apoptotic cell death in HepG2 cells by 80.7-fold, it induced total apoptosis by 34.73% (23.07% for early apoptosis, 11.66% for late apoptosis) compared to the untreated control group (0.43%) arresting the cell population at the S-phase by 49.6% compared to control 39.15%. Finally, compound 6 upregulated the apoptosis-related genes, while it inhibted the Bcl-2 expression. Hence, glucosylated rhodanines may serve as a promising drug candidates against cancer with promising topoisomerase II and DNA intercalation.

Synthesis of novel d-α-galactopyranosyl-l-seryl/l-threonyl-l-alanyl-l-alanine as useful precursors of new glycopeptide antibiotics with computational calculations studies.

New, simple, synthetic routes for the preparation of novel glycopeptide antibiotics are described. The structures of the synthesized compounds are elucidated by IR, two-dimensional NMR spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. The stability of the new glycopeptide derivatives 10a,b is confirmed by assessing the physical character, HOMO-LUMO gap energy, ESP, and the corresponding correlation of 2D-NMR analysis. Furtherly, the target precursors are investigated via the DFT/B3LYP/6-311(G) basis set.

Synthesis, antiviral, DFT and molecular docking studies of some novel 1,2,4-triazine nucleosides as potential bioactive compounds.

A novel series of nucleosides with potential antiviral activity have been synthesized and characterized using IR, MS, 1D NMR and 2D NMR data. The antiviral activity of the synthesized compounds was assessed against the Coxsackie B virus and Hepatitis A virus (HAV-10). The results revealed that compound 6 is equipotent to the standard drug Ribavirin against HAV-10. Also, some computational studies, such as the prediction of pharmacokinetic properties, toxicity, and bioactivity, have been done.

Evaluation of 2-Thioxoimadazolidin-4-one Derivatives as Potent Anti-Cancer Agents through Apoptosis Induction and Antioxidant Activation: In Vitro and In Vivo Approaches.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most widespread malignancies and is reported as the fourth most prevalent cause of cancer deaths worldwide. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the probable mechanistic cytotoxic effect of the promising 2-thioxoimidazolidin-4-one derivative on liver cancer cells using in vitro and in vivo approaches. The compounds were tested for the in vitro cytotoxic activity using MTT assay, and the promising compound was tested in colony forming unit assay, flow cytometric analysis, RT-PCR, Western blotting, in vivo using SEC-carcinoma and in silico to highlight the virtual mechanism of action. Both compounds 4 and 2 performed cytotoxic effects against HepG2 cells with IC50 values of 0.017 and 0.18 µM, respectively, compared to Staurosporine and 5-Fu as reference drugs with IC50 values of 5.07 and 5.18 µM, respectively. Compound 4 treatment revealed apoptosis induction by 19.35-fold (11.42% compared to 0.59% in control), arresting the cell cycle at G2/M phase. Moreover, studying gene expression that plays critical roles in cell cycle and apoptosis by RT-PCR demonstrated that compound 4 enhances the expression of the pro-apoptotic genes p53, PUMA, and Caspase 3, 8, and 9, and impedes the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 gene in the HepG2 cells. It can also inhibit the PI3K/AKT pathway at both gene and protein levels, which was reinforced by the in silico predictions of the molecular docking simulations towards the PI3K/AKT proteins. Finally, in vivo study verified that compound 4 has a promising anti-cancer activity through activating antioxidant levels (CAT, SOD and GSH) and ameliorating hematological, biochemical, and histopathological findings.

Design, synthesis, characterization and biological evaluation of Thieno[2,3-b]pyridines-chitosan nanocomposites as drug delivery systems for colon targeting.

Thieno[2,3-b]pyridine derivatives DATPa-c have been synthesized based on Thorpe-Ziegler Cyclization. The reaction of arylidene malononitrile derivatives (Ia-c) with thiocyanoacetamide (II) in basic medium (piperidine) followed by alkylation using ethyl chloroacetate and finally, cyclization in sodium ethoxide yielded DATPa-c. Thieno[2,3-b]pyridine-chitosan nanocomposites CS-DATPa-c were prepared from the DATPa-c and CS nanoparticles using sodium tripolyphosphate (TPP). CS-DATPa-c nanocomposites were characterized using FTIR, TEM and XRD techniques and showed a relatively narrow size distribution of monodispersed nanoparticles with the average size of 14-78 nm. The in vitro release studies of CS-DAΤPa-c nanocomposites were investigated and showed that the drug release rate is pH-dependent and the trend is as follows: basic > neutral > acidic. The faster release rate in basic medium effectively prolongs drug delivery in gastric pH. Additionally, the antibacterial investigation showed that DATPa-c and CS-DATPa-c nanocomposites exhibited antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria but CS-DATPa-c nanocomposites showed much higher antibacterial activity compared to the DATPa-c, which in agreement with the particle size measurements as DATPa-c are in the bulky structure whereas, CS-DATPa-c are in the nanostructure. The results may have applications of drug design for colon targeting.

New N-ribosides and N-mannosides of rhodanine derivatives with anticancer activity on leukemia cell line: Design, synthesis, DFT and molecular modelling studies.

N-ribosylation and N-mannosylation compounds have a great role in compounds activity as anticancer. The reaction of 2-thioxo-4-thiazolidinone (rhodanine) derivatives, as aglycon part, was done with ribofuranose and mannopyranose sugars (glycone part) followed by deacetylation without cleavage of the rhodanine under acidic medium. Conformational analysis has been studied using NMR methods (2D, DQF-COSY, HMQC and HMBC). All final the new deprotected nucleosides were screened against leukemia 1210, and were found to be considerably less potent (Ic50% 1.4-10.6 µM) than doxorubicin (Ic50% 0.02 µM). Compounds 10d and 10e which contain ribose moiety have better activity than those with mannose sugar. DFT calculations with B3LYP/6-31 + G (d) level were used to analyze the electronic and geometric characteristics deduced from the stable structure of the compounds. The principal quantum chemical descriptors showed a good correlation with the experimental observations. Rapid Overlay Comparison Similarity (ROCS) study was operated to explain the compounds similarity and to figure out the most important pharmacophoric features.

Synthesis, molecular modeling and anti-cancer evaluation of a series of quinazoline derivatives.

Quinazolines were surveyed as biologically relevant moieties against different cancer cell lines, so in the present study, we analyzed novel derivatives as target-oriented chemotherapeutic anti-cancer drugs. A series of 3-substituted 2-thioxo-2,3-dihydro-1H-quinazolin-4-ones 4a-e were synthesized via the reaction of 2-aminobenzoic acid (1) with isothiocyanate derivatives 2a-e. S-alkylation and S-glycosylation were carried via the reaction of 4a-e with alkyl halides and α-glycopyranosyl bromides 7a,b under anhydrous alkaline and glycoside conditions, respectively. The S-alkylated and S-glycosylated structures, and not that of the N-alkylated and N-glycosylated isomers, have been selected for the products. Conformational analysis has been studied by homo- and heteronuclear two-dimensional NMR methods (DQF-COSY, HMQC, and HMBC). The S site of alkylation and glycosylation were determined from the 1H, 13C heteronuclear multiple-quantum coherence (HMQC) experiments. All derivatives were subjected to molecular docking calculations, which selected some derivatives (5n, 8c, 8g, 9c, and 9a) as promising ones based on their excellent binding affinities towards the EGFR tyrosine kinase molecular target. The in vitro cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 and HepG2 cell lines showed effective anti-proliferative activity of the analyzed derivatives with lower IC50 values especially 9a with IC50 = 2.09 and 2.08 µM against MCF-7 and HepG2, respectively, and their treatments were safe against the normal cell line Gingival mesenchymal stem cells (GMSC). Moreover, RT-PCR reaction investigated the apoptotic pathway for the compound 9a, which activated the P53 genes and its related genes. So, further work is recommended for developing it as a chemotherapeutic drug.

Design, Synthesis and Cytotoxicity Evaluation of New 3, 5-Disubstituted-2-Thioxoimidazolidinones.

BACKGROUND: Some 2-thioxoimidazolidinones have been reported as anti-prostate and anti-breast cancer agents through their inhibitory activity on topoisomerase I that is considered as a potential chemotherapeutic target. OBJECTIVE: A new series of 3,5-disubstituted-2-thioxoimidazolidinone derivatives 10a-f and their S-methyl analogs 11a-f were designed, synthesized and evaluated for cytotoxicity against human prostate cancer cell line (PC-3), human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) and non-cancerous human lung fibroblast cell line (WI-38). Results and Method: While compounds 10a-f showed a broad range of activities against PC-3 and MCF-7 cell lines (IC50 = 34.0 - 186.9 and 24.6 - 147.5 µM respectively), the S-methyl analogs 11a-f showed (IC50 = 22.7 - 198.5 and 16.9 - 188.2 µM respectively) in comparison with 5-fluorouracil (IC50 = 60.7 and 40.7 µM respectively). 11c (IC50 = 22.7 and 29.2 µM) and 11f (IC50 = 28.7 and 16.9 µM) were the most potent among all compounds against both PC-3 and MCF-7 respectively with no cytotoxicity against WI-38. CONCLUSION: The newly synthesized compounds showed good activity against PC-3 and MCF-7 cell lines in comparison with 5-fluorouracil. Compounds 11c and 11f bound with human topoisomerase I similar to its known inhibitors and significantly inhibited its DNA relaxation activity in a dose dependent manner which may rationalize their molecular mechanism as cytotoxic agents.

A new approach for the N- and S-galactosylation of 5-arylidene-2-thioxo-4-thiazolidinones.

N- and S-galactosylation was carried out via the reaction of 5-((Z)-arylidene)-2-thioxo-4-thiazolidinones with 2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-α-d-galactopyranosyl bromide under alkaline conditions or under silylation conditions. Deacetylation of the N-galactosylation products was performed with concentrated hydrochloric acid in methanol (3.5%) or sodium methoxide in methanol without cleavage of the 2-thioxo-4-thaizolidinone ring by means of acid hydrolysis. The anomers were separated by flash column chromatography, and their configurations were assigned by NMR spectroscopy. The deprotected nucleosides were screened against leukemia L-1210 and were found inactive.

Potato disc bioassay and cytotoxic effect of Leptadenia pyrotechnica: comparative study of diverse extracts.

Comparative acute toxicity studies of the latex and sequential extracts of Leptadenia pyrotechnica (Forsk.) Decne (Asclepiadaceae) were recorded using brine shrimp. The higher toxicities were exhibited in latex; methanol, methanol/dichloromethane (1:1), defatted methanol/dichloromethane (1:1), defatted methanol and dichloromethane extracts. The other extracts; aqueous, alkaloids, ethyl acetate and n-butanol exhibited less toxicities compared with the other extracts. The estimated LC50 and its 95% confidence limits for these extracts expressed in ppm were: methanol, latex 18.84 (11.22-31.61), methanol/dichloromethane 19.95 (7.76-53.70), defatted methanol/dichloromethane 21.38 (7.24-63.10), defatted methanol 28.19 (16.27-48.81) and dichloromethane 30.90 (11.75-79.43). The anti-tumor activities; potato disc assays of methanol, ethyl acetate and alkaloids extracts showed good activities as anti-tumor agent which represented-49.30,-43.20 an -33.60%, respectively. While latex and aqueous extract represented-30.80 and-28.17%, respectively.

A new approach to the synthesis of benzothiazole, benzoxazole, and pyridine nucleosides as potential antitumor agents.

A modified nitrogen and sulfur glycosylation reaction involving benzothiazole benzoxazole and pyridine nucleoside bases with furanose and pyranose sugars are described. Conformational analysis has been studied by homo- and heteronuclear two-dimensional NMR methods (2D DFQ-COSY, HMQC and HMBC). The N and S sites of glycosylation were determined from the 1H, 13C heteronuclear multiple-quantum coherence (HMQC) experiments. All the deprotected nucleosides were tested for their potential antitumor activity.

Synthesis of N-substituted 1-amino-2,3-dihydro-1H-imidazole-2-thione-N-nucleosides and S-glycosylated derivatives.

Fusion of the N-substituted 1-amino-2,3-dihydro-1H-imidazole-2-thiones 1-4 with the peracylated ribose 5 in the presence of iodine afforded the N-nucleosides 6-9 in moderate yields. Deblocking with NaOMe/MeOH gave the free nucleosides 10-13. Alternatively, silylation of 4 followed by ribosylation with 5 in the presence of TMSOTf as catalyst afforded 9 in moderate yield. Ribosylation of 4 with the chlorodeoxyribose derivative 15 as well as 5 in the presence of NaH in DMF afforded the thioglycosides 16 and 18, respectively. Deblocking of 16 and 18 with NaOMe/MeOH gave the free S-thioglycosides 17 and 19, respectively. Thermal rearrangement of 19 at high temperature in the presence of iodine furnished 13 in low yield. The new free nucleosides and thioglycosides were inactive against HIV-1 and HIV-2 induced cytopathicity in human MT-4 lymphocyte cells.

Synthesis of C-glycosyl compounds of N-acetylneuraminic acid from D-gluconolactone.

A general strategy towards the synthesis of C-glycosyl compounds of N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) has been developed and successfully applied to the synthesis of C-methyl and C-phenyl derivatives. The key strategic elements are (i) chain extension of a D-gluconolactone derivative as C(6)-precursor with an allyl Grignard reagent as C(3)-precursor having in 2 position the C-linked aglycon moiety, (ii) stereoselective C-4/C-5 erythro-diol formation, (iii) 6-exo-trig selective heterocyclization, and (iv) installment of the 5-acetylamino and C-1 carboxylate functionalities. The efficiency and potential versatility of this approach was exemplified in the synthesis of C-methyl derivative 1 as target molecule.