In the present paper,
a facile and efficient synthetic procedure
has been applied to obtain dihydrodipyrrolo[1,2-a:2′,1′-c]pyrazine-2,3-dicarboxylates
(5a–s), which have subsequently gone
through the cyclization in the presence of hydrazine hydrate to afford
12-aryl-11-hydroxy-5,6-dihydropyrrolo[2″,1″:3′,4′]pyrazino[1′,2′:1,5]pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyridazine-8(9H)-ones (7a–q). The molecular structures of these novel
compounds were extensively examined through the analysis of spectroscopic
data in combination with X-ray crystallography techniques. Following
that, the in vitro cytotoxic activities of all derivatives
against three human cancer cell lines (Panc-1, PC3, and MDA-MB-231)
were comprehensively evaluated alongside the assessment on normal
human dermal fibroblast (HDF) cells using the MTT assay. Among the
compounds, the 3-nitrophenyl derivative (7m) from the
second series showed the best antiproliferative activity against all
tested cell lines, particularly against Panc-1 cell line, (IC50 = 12.54 μM), being nearly twice as potent as the standard
drug etoposide. The induction of apoptosis and sub-G1 cell cycle arrest
in Panc-1 cancer cells by compound 7m was confirmed through
further assessment. Moreover, the inhibition of kinases and the induction
of cellular apoptosis by compound 7m in Panc-1 cancer
cells were validated using the Western blotting assay.