Cytotoxic potential of dihydrochalcones from and their semi-synthetic derivatives.

In the search of cytotoxic dihydrochalcones, this investigation led to the isolation of seven compounds (-) from and the preparation of eight derivatives (-). The cytotoxicity of samples was evaluated against lung (A549), breast (MCF-7), and cervical (HeLa) human cancer cells. The CHCl/MeOH extract of the aerial part had strong cytotoxicity against all cells [IC 11.2 (MCF-7), 8.4 (HeLa) and 13.1 (A549) μg/mL]. A strong activity was also displayed by the -hexane fraction on MCF-7 (IC 11.2 μg/mL). The precursor and the derivative were specifically found as strong cytotoxic agents toward MCF-7 (7.6 μM) and HeLa (3.1 μM), respectively and were more effective than the positive control. Derivatives (3.1 μM) and (21.3 μM) against HeLa were most potent than their precursor (23.7 μM). This is the first preparation of - as well as the cytotoxicity of , , -, fractions, and extract.