Design and Synthesis of Pyrazolo[3,4-d]Pyrimidines: Nitric Oxide Releasing Compounds Targeting Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Publication date: Available online 7 March 2017
Source:Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry
Author(s): Yaseen A.M.M. Elshaier, Mohamed A. Shaaban, Mohammed K. Abd El Hamid, Mostafa H. Abdelrahman, Mahrous A. Abou-Salim, Sara M. Elgazwi, Fathi Halaweish
A new series of pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidines tethered with nitric oxide (NO) producing functionality was designed and synthesized. Sulforhodamine B (SRB) protein assay revealed that NO releasing moiety in the synthesized compounds significantly decreased the cell growth more than the des-NO analogues. Compounds 7C and 7G possessing N-para-substituted phenyl group, released the highest NO concentration of 4.6% and 4.7% respectively. Anti-proliferative activity of synthesized compounds on HepG2 cell line identified compounds 7h, 7p, 14a and 14b as the most cytotoxic compounds in the series of IC50 = 3, 5, 3 and 5 µM, respectively, compared to erlotinib as a reference drug (IC50 = 25 µM). Flow cytometry studies revealed that 7h arrested the cells in G0/G1 phase of cell cycle while 7p arrested the cells in S phase. Moreover, docking study of the synthesized compounds on EGFR (PDB code: 1M17) and cytotoxicity study indicated that N-1 phenyl para substitution, pyrazole C-3 alkyl substitution and tethering the nitrate moiety through butyl group had a significant impact on the activity.

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