A series of thiosemicarbazones (TSCs) (bearing a (4)N-azabicyclo[3.2.2]nonane moiety) derived from 3-acylpyridazines, 4-acetylpyrimidines, and 2-acetylpyrazines (1-8) were synthesized as potential antitumor agents. TSCs 1-8 exhibited potent cytotoxic activity against human acute lymphoblastic leukemia CCRF-CEM cells (IC(50) = 0.05-0.77 microM) and colon adenocarcinoma HT-29 cells (IC(50) = 0.011-2.22 microM). Copper II complexes of TSCs 1-8 showed significant improvement in cytotoxic activity against HT-29 cells (IC(50) = 0.004-1.51 microM) by a factor of 3. However, complexation of ligands 1, 2, 4, and 6 with Fe(II) results in lowering of cytotoxic activity by a factor of approximately 7. In clonogenic assays involving human tumor cells of different tumor origins, compounds 5, 7, 8, and their copper complexes 5Cu(II), 7Cu(II), and 8Cu(II) exhibited remarkable cytotoxic activities with mean IC(50) values of 6, 0.18, 1, 1, 0.37, and 0.37 nM, respectively. In particular, the compounds were highly effective against human colon carcinoma and large and small cell lung carcinoma cells. The TSC derivative 5 was evaluated in vivo in nude mice bearing LXFL 529 human large cell lung carcinoma cells. With respect to antitumor activity, application of 30 mg/kg/d resulted in moderate inhibition (42%) of tumor growth. No effect on tumor growth was observed at a dose of 10 mg/kg/d. However, a dose of 40 or 60 mg/kg/d resulted in 50 and 75% death, respectively, in the treated mice, indicating the high toxicity of these compounds. Using human liver microsomes, compound 5 was found to be rapidly and highly metabolized in vitro. In actual fact, only 2% of the unmetabolized compound could be detected in the incubation medium after 5 min. The IC(50) for cell proliferation (0.006-0.022 microM) elicited by these compounds is much lower than that of the inhibition of [(14)C]cytidine incorporation into DNA (0.18-3.32 microM). These compounds are also noncell cycle specific agents. Interestingly, compounds 5, 5Cu(II), and 8 were found to be potent inducers of apoptosis in Burkitt's lymphoma cells.

Recently we have described the antitumor activities of 2-benzoxazolylhydrazones derived from 2-formyl and 2-acetylpyridines. In search of a more efficacious analogue, compounds in which the 2-acetylpyridine moiety has been replaced by 2-acylpyridine and alpha-(N)-acetyldiazine/quinoline groups have been synthesized. The 2-acylpyridyl hydrazones inhibited in vitro cell proliferation in the nM range, whereas the hydrazones derived from the alpha-(N)-acetyldiazines/quinolines inhibited cell growth in the muM range. Compounds tested in the NCI-60 cell assay were effective inhibitors of leukemia, colon, and ovarian cancer cells. E-13k [N-benzoxazol-2-yl-N'-(1-isoquinolin-3-yl-ethylidene)-hydrazine] inhibited the proliferation of MCF-7 breast carcinoma cells more efficiently than nontransformed MCF-10A cells. It is not transported by P-glycoprotein and a weak MRP substrate. Increased concentrations of serum or alpha(1)-acid glycoprotein did not reduce the antiproliferative activity of the compound. In the in vivo hollow fiber assay, E-13k achieved a score of 24, with a net cell kill of OVCAR-3 (ovarian) and SF2-95 (CNS) tumor cells.

Here we describe the effects of novel benzoxazol-2-yl and benzimidazol-2-yl hydrazones derived from 2-pyridinecarbaldehyde and 2-acetylpyridine. The IC 50 values for inhibition of cell proliferation in KB-3-1, CCRF-CEM, Burkitt's lymphoma, HT-29, HeLa, ZR-75 and MEXF276L by most of the novel compounds are in the nanomolar range. In colony-forming assays with human tumor xenografts the compounds 2-actylpyridine benzoxazol-2-ylhydrazone (EPH52), 2-acetylpyridine benzoimidazol-2-ylhydrazone (EPH61) and 2-acetylpyridine 1-methylbenzoimidazol-2-ylhydrazone (EPH116) exhibited above-average inhibition of colon carcinoma (IC 50 ‫؍‬ 1.3-4.56 nM); EPH52 and EPH116 also exhibited above-average inhibition of melanoma cells. As shown with human liver microsomes, EPH116 is only moderately metabolized. The compound inhibited the growth of human colon cancer xenografts in nude mice in a dose-dependent manner. Thiosemicarbazones derived from 2-formylpyridines have been shown to be inhibitors of ribonucleotide reductase (RR). The following results show that RR is not the target of the novel compounds: cells overexpressing the M2 subunit of RR and resistant to the RR inhibitor hydroxyurea are not cross-resistant to the novel compounds; inhibition of RR occurs at 6-to 73-fold higher drug concentrations than that of inhibition of cell proliferation; the pattern of cell cycle arrest in S phase induced by the RR inhibitor hydroxyurea is not observed after treatment with the novel compounds; and a COMPARE analysis with the related compounds 2-acetylpyrazine benzothiazol-2-ylhydrazone (EPH95) and 3-acetylisoquinoline benzoxazol-2-ylhydrazone (EPH136) showed that the pattern of these compounds is not related to any of the standard antitumor drugs. Therefore, these novel compounds show inhibition of colon cancers and exhibit a novel mechanism of action. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Key words: benzoxazolyl hydrazones; benzimidazolyl hydrazones; antitumor agents; colon cancerTheoretically, approximately 50% of the patients diagnosed with cancer can be cured by surgery and radiation therapy since their tumors have not spread. Of the remaining 50%, about 10% are curable with systemic chemotherapy, including children with leukemia and sarcomas and adults with testicular cancer and choriocarcinoma. However, most metastatic cancers are currently not curable by chemotherapy. Half of all cancer patients fail to respond to chemotherapy or relapse from the initial response and ultimately die from their metastatic disease. 1 Colorectal cancer affects about 1 person in 20 in Western populations, representing 15% of all cancers. 2 Because the survival rate is low, new drugs for this type of cancer are desired. 2 The hope for improvement in treatment outcome resides in continued research designed to optimize the administration of currently available agents and to discover novel therapeutic products. 1 Taxanes and camptothecins, for example, are new classes of compounds showing promising results in ovarian, breast and colon cancers. 1 To obtain additional com...

The synthesis of a series of novel thiosemicarbazones (TSC's) derived from various alkyl diazinyl (3-pyridazinyl, 4-pyrimidinyl, 2-pyrazinyl) ketones and 3-pyridazinecarbaldehyde and their evaluation against herpes simplex virus (HSV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as well as the determination of their cytotoxicity are described. In addition, the effects of combination of such TSC's with the well-known antiviral drugs acyclovir (ACV) and 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT) were studied. Under our experimental conditions, i.e. determination of virus-induced cytopathic effect upon infection of HUT78 cells with HSV-1 and upon infection of MT4 cells with HIV-1, no antiviral activity could be detected with any of the TSC's. However, pronounced effects on proliferation of these rapidly growing T4 lymphocyte cell lines were observed. Clear structure-activity relationships with regard to these cytotoxic effects could be established: compared to pyridine, pyrazine, or pyrimidine-derived TSC's most of the 3-pyridazinyl congeners investigated are less cytotoxic; introduction of a methyl group into C-6 of the pyridazine system or prolongation of the acyl moiety in these compounds has essentially no influence; all compounds bearing an N,N-dimethylamino or a cycloamino substituent are much more toxic than those with an NH2 or NHR substituent; the nature of R in the latter type of compounds has only moderate influence. It has been reported that combination of TSC's with the antiviral agent acyclovir (ACV) results in potentiation of this well-known drug. We evaluated the potential of our series of novel TSC's in combination with ACV for inhibition of HSV-1-induced cytopathic effect in HUT78 cells and in combination with 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT) for inhibition of HIV-1-induced cytopathic effect in MT4 cells. Only four compounds out of this series, all characterized by an unsubstituted NH2 group, exhibited moderate synergism with the above mentioned antiviral drugs. Our results do not support the previously expressed opinion that TSC's are selective antiviral agents. In our test systems no evidence for inhibition of virus-induced cytopathic effect was obtained. The TSC derivatives exhibited a broad range of cytotoxic effects, some at concentrations considerably below those reported to have antiviral efficacy. Several of our novel diazine-derived compounds proved advantageous over the previously described pyridine analogues with regard to cytotoxicity. Moderate synergism could be detected for relatively noncytotoxic TSC's with the antiviral drugs ACV (antiherpes) and AZT (anti-HIV).

A series of N-heteroaryl hydrazones derived from aryl N-heteroaryl or bis-N-heteroaryl methanones was prepared in search for potential novel antitumor agents. The stereochemistry of these compounds was established by means of NMR spectroscopy. Antiproliferative activity was determined in a panel of human tumor cell lines (CCRF-CEM, Burkitt's lymphoma, HeLa, ZR-75-1, HT-29, and MEXF 276L) in vitro. Generally, the new compounds were found to be more potent (IC50 = 0.011-0.436 microM) than the ribonucleotide reductase inhibitor hydroxyurea (IC50 = 140 microM). Most of the compounds exhibited the highest activity against Burkitt's lymphoma with an IC50 of 0.011-0.035 microM. [14C]Cytidine incorporation into DNA was quantitated for selected hydrazones (Z-A, E-1, Z-3, Z-4, E-5, Z-5, E-13, E-18, Z-19, Z-24, and E-26) as a measure of the inhibition of ribonucleotide reductase in Burkitt's lymphoma cells. The E-configurated compounds were found to inhibit [14C]cytidine incorporation to a greater extent (IC50 = 0.67-5.05 microM) than the Z-isomers (IC50 = 7.20 to > 10 microM). Principal component analysis of the IC50 values obtained for inhibition of cell proliferation revealed that the cell lines tested can be grouped into three main families showing different sensitivities toward the compounds in our series [(i) CCRF-CEM, Burkitt's lymphoma, and Hela; (ii) HT-29; and (iii) MEXF 276 L].

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2‐Acetylpyridine hydrazone derivatives of benzothiazole, benzoxazole, and benzimidazole were found to exhibit potent cytotoxic activity against the growth of suspended leukemia and lymphomas. They were also active in a number of solid tumor screens, e.g. HeLa uterine carcinoma, SOS bone osteosarcoma, lung MB9812, lung A549, Mcf‐7 breast growth. In L1210 lymphoid leukemia cells the compounds preferentially inhibited RNA synthesis followed by DNA synthesis at 100 μM after 60 min. The reduction of de novo purine synthesis by the compounds at the regulatory sites PRPP‐amido transferase, IMP dehydrogenase and dihydrofolate reductase was responsible for the suppression of nucleic synthesis. Other minor sites where the agents have metabolic effects were thymidylate synthetase and thymidine kinase which would be additive with the overall inhibition of cell growth. The ct‐DNA studies suggest that the compounds also interacted with the DNA molecule itself, probably affecting template activity.