Synthesis, molecular docking analysis and in vitro evaluation of new heterocyclic hybrids of 4-aza-podophyllotoxin as potent cytotoxic agents.

Two different synthetic approaches to novel heterocyclic hybrid compounds of 4-azapodophyllotoxin were investigated. The obtained products were characterized by infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and high-resolution mass spectrometry. MTT protocol was then performed to examine the cytotoxic activity of these products against KB, HepG2, A549, MCF7, and Hek-293 cell lines. The cytotoxic assessment indicated that all products displayed moderate to high cytotoxicity against all tested cancer cell lines. The most active compound 13k containing the 2-methoxypyridin-4-yl group exhibited selective cytotoxicity against KB, A549, and HepG2 cell lines with the IC50 values ranging from 0.23 to 0.27 µM, which were between 5- to 10-fold more potent than the positive control ellipticine. Compounds 13a (HetAr = thiophen-3-yl) and 13d (HetAr = 5-bromofuran-2-yl) displayed high cytotoxic selectivity for A549 and HepG2 cancer cell lines when compared to the other cancer cell lines and low toxicity to the normal Hek-293 cell line. Molecular docking study was conducted to evaluate the interaction of new synthesized compounds with the colchicine-binding-site of tubulin. Besides that, physicochemical and pharmacokinetic properties of the most active compounds 13h,k were predicted.

A new flavonoid from the leaves of Garcinia mckeaniana Craib and α-glucosidase and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities.

From the ethyl acetate extract (EtOAc) of the Vietnamese Garcinia mckeaniana leaves, a new flavone 8-C-glycoside 2'',6''-di-O-acetylvitexin (1), together with six known analogs 2-7 were isolated. Their structures were determined by spectral methods and compared with literature data. In α-glucosidase inhibitory assay, the EtOAc extract and its flavone and biflavone derivatives possessed the significant IC50 range of 9.17-97.53 µM, as compared with that of the positive control acarbose (249 µM). Flavones and biflavones showed are better than flavone glycosides in both α-glucosidase and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities[Formula: see text].

Natural Prenylated Xanthones as Potential Inhibitors of PI3k/Akt/mTOR Pathway in Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells.

Three prenylated xanthones, garcinone E (1: ), bannaxanthone D (2: ) and bannanxanthone E (3: ) were isolated from the leaves of Garcinia mckeaniana Graib. Their structures were elucidated by spectral methods and compared with literature data. To evaluate their anti-proliferative effects in tumor cells, firstly, cisplatin was used as a positive control and the effects of compound 1:  - 3: were determined by performing MTT assay in MDA-MB-231, CNE-2 and A549 cancer cells. The results showed compound 1:  - 3: exhibited stronger inhibitory effect than cisplatin in MDA-MB-231. Further effects of compound 1:  - 3: in TNBC MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 cells were examined by performing cell cycle and apoptosis assays. The results indicated that compound 1:  - 3: had ability to arrest cell cycle at G2/M phase and induce apoptosis. Furthermore, compound 2: significantly down-regulated PI3K, Akt and mTOR levels in both total proteins and phosphorylated form, which is its potential anti-cancer mechanism. These findings indicated that those prenylated xanthones might serve as promising leading compounds for the development of anticancer drug for TNBC.

Cytotoxic and α-Glucosidase Inhibitory Xanthones from Garcinia mckeaniana Leaves and Molecular Docking Study.

A new racemic xanthone, garmckeanin A (1), and eight known analogs 2-9 were isolated from the ethyl acetate (AcOEt) extract of the Vietnamese Garcinia mckeaniana leaves. Their structures were determined by MS and NMR spectral analyses and compared with the literature. The AcOEt extract showed good cytotoxicity against cancer cell lines KB, Lu, Hep-G2 and MCF7, with IC50 values of 5.40-8.76 µg/mL, and it also possessed α-glucosidase inhibitory activity, with an IC50 value of 9.17 µg/mL. Garmckeanin A (1) exhibited inhibition of all cancer cell lines, with an IC50 value of 7.3-0.9 µM. Allanxanthone C (5) successfully controlled KB growth, with an IC50 value of 0.54 µM, higher than that of the positive control, ellipticine (IC50 1.22 µM). Norathyriol (8) was a promising α-glucosidase inhibitor, with an IC50 value of 0.07 µM, much higher than that of the positive control, acarbose (IC50 161.0 µM). The interactions of the potential α-glucosidase inhibitors with the C- and N-terminal domains of human intestinal α-glucosidase were also investigated by molecular docking study. The results indicated that bannaxanthone D (2), garcinone E (4), bannaxanthone E (6), and norathyriol (8) exhibit higher binding affinity to the C-terminal than to the N-terminal domain through essential residues in the active sites. In particular, compound 8 could be assumed to be the most potent mixed inhibitor.

Design, synthesis and evaluation of novel hybrids between 4-anilinoquinazolines and substituted triazoles as potent cytotoxic agents.

In this research several series of novel dioxygenated ring fused 4-anilinoquinazolines (10a-d) and 4-anilinoquinazoline-substituted triazole hybrid compounds (11-14) have been designed and synthesized. Their biological significance was highlighted by evaluating in vitro for anticancer activities, wherein several compounds displayed excellent activity specifically against three human cancer cell lines (KB, epidermoid carcinoma; HepG2, hepatoma carcinoma; SK-Lu-1, non-small lung cancer). Especially, compound 13a exhibited up to 100-fold higher cytotoxicity in comparison with erlotinib. Docking the most cytotoxic compounds (11d, 13a, 13b, and 14c) into the ATP binding site of different EGFR tyrosine kinase domains was perfomed to predict the analogous binding mode of these compounds to the EGFR targets.