Non-transition Metal-Mediated Diverse Aryl-Heteroatom Bond Formation of Arylammonium Salts.

Aryl-heteroatom (C-X) bonds ubiquitously exist in organic, medicinal, and material chemistry, but a universal method to construct diverse C-X bonds is lacking. Here we report our discovery of a convenient and efficient approach to construct various C-X bonds using arylammonium salts as the substrate via an SNAr process. This strategy features mild reaction condition, no request of transition metal catalyst, and easy formation of various C-X bonds (C-S, C-Si, C-Sn, C-Ge, C-Se, C-N). The method was successfully applied to a late-stage functionalization of an existing antibiotic drug, to a Clickable reaction of NBD-based ammonium salt as turn-on fluorescent probe to recognize L-cysteine and homocysteine, and to the synthesis of a DNA encoded library (DEL) bearing different C-X bonds.

New tanshinone I derivatives S222 and S439 similarly inhibit topoisomerase I/II but reveal different p53-dependency in inducing G2/M arrest and apoptosis.

Tanshinone I (Tanshinone-1), a major active principle of the traditional Chinese medicine Salvia miltiorrhiza, possesses excellent anticancer properties, including inhibiting proliferation, angiogenesis and metastasis and overcoming multidrug resistance (MDR). However, its direct anticancer molecular target(s) remain unknown. Here we report that tanshinone-1 and its two new derivatives, S222 and S439, directly inhibit DNA topoisomerase I/II (Top1/2). With significantly improved water solubility, S222 and S439 displayed 12- and 14-times more potent proliferative inhibition than their parent tanshinone-1 in a panel of 15 cancer cell lines. Both retained tanshinone-1's anti-MDR and anti-angiogenesis properties and its capability to reduce the phosphorylation of Stat3 at Tyr705 with apparently enhanced efficacy and in these regards, S439 was also slightly more potent than S222. Both derivatives and tanshinone-1 directly inhibited Top1 and Top2 at molecular and cellular levels; the derivatives displayed similar potency but both were more potent than tanshinone-1. The inhibition of S222 and S439 on Top1 and Top2 was also more potent than that of the Top1 inhibitor hydroxylcamptothecin and the Top2 inhibitor etoposide, respectively. Consistently, tanshinone-1 and its derivatives induced DNA double-strand breaks, G2/M arrest and apoptosis. Unexpectedly, the derivatives demonstrated different p53-dependency in inducing both cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. S222 showed no obvious p53-dependency. In contrast, S439 induced more G2/M arrest in p53-proficient cells than in p53-deficient cells while its apoptotic induction was the opposite. However, their proliferative inhibition was independent of the p53 status. Due to their structures different from the known Top1, Top2 and dual Top1/2 inhibitors, our results indicate that tanshinone-1 and its derivatives are a new type of dual Top1/2 inhibitors.

Effects of alisol B 23-acetate on ovarian cancer cells: G1 phase cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, migration and invasion inhibition.

BACKGROUND: Ovarian cancer is the first leading cause of death among gynecologic malignancies worldwide. Discovery of new chemotherapeutic drugs is still imperative for the improvement of the survival rate. PURPOSE: This study aims to investigate the anti-cancer potential of alisol B 23-acetate (AB23), a protostane-type triterpene isolated from the Alismatis Rhizoma, in the parental and paclitaxel-resistant ovarian cancer cells. METHODS: MTT assay was performed to evaluate cell viability after treatment with AB23, along with flow cytometry for apoptosis and cell cycle analysis. Western blotting was conducted to determine the relative protein level. Wound healing and transwell assays were performed to investigate the effect of AB23 on cell migration and invasion. RESULTS: AB23 obviously inhibited proliferation of the three ovarian cancer cell lines, down-regulated the protein levels of CDK4, CDK6, and cyclin D1, and blocked the cell cycle progressions in G1 phase. Meanwhile, AB23 induced accumulation of the sub-G1 phase in the three cell lines in a concentration dependent manner. The protein levels of cleaved poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 were up-regulated after treatment with AB23. Further study showed that AB23 induced endoplasmic reticulum stress through IRE1 signaling pathway and silencing of IRE1α partially enhanced AB23-induced apoptosis. Wound healing and transwell assays showed that AB23 could also suppress the migration and invasion of HEY cells. Moreover, it down-regulated the protein levels of matrix metalloproteinases MMP-2 and MMP-9. CONCLUSION: AB23 possessed anti-proliferation, anti-migration and anti-invasion activities as a single agent on ovarian cancer cells.