Design and synthesis of biaryl aryl stilbenes/ethylenes as antimicrotubule agents.

Two new series of compounds E-2,3,4-trimethoxy-6-styrylbiphenyls and 2,3,4-trimethoxy-6-(1-phenylvinyl)biphenyls were designed, synthesized and evaluated for antitubulin activity. A common intermediate 4,5,6-trimethoxybiphenyl-2-carbaldehydes was employed to generate the two scaffolds. Majority of the analogs inhibited cell proliferation and those functionalized with 3,4-(1,3-dioxolane) and 3,4-difluoro groups were identified as effective inhibitors in both the series.

Design and synthesis of resveratrol-based nitrovinylstilbenes as antimitotic agents.

A new series of resveratrol analogues was designed, synthesized, and demonstrated to be tubulin polymerization inhibitors. Most of these compounds exhibited antiproliferative activity and inhibited in vitro tubulin polymerization effectively at concentrations of 4.4-68.

Synthesis and antitumor evaluation of nitrovinyl biphenyls: anticancer agents based on allocolchicines.

A new class of nitrovinyl biphenyl compounds based on the structures of colchicines and allocolchicines were designed, synthesized, and shown to inhibit tubulin polymerization and cause mitotic arrest. A majority of these compounds were found to possess potent anticancer properties, with IC(50) values in the range of 0.05-7 μM, and are equally potent with colchicine in HeLa and MCF-7 cells.