Synthesis and anticancer activity of chalcone analogues with sulfonyl groups

Three series of sulfonyl esters were synthesized in reactions of sulfonyl chlorides with three different phenolic chalcone analogues (dehydrozingerone (4-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-3-buten-2-one), (E)-1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)pent-1-en-3-one, and (E)-1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-5-methylhex-1-en-3-one). The structures of the new compounds were determined by IR, MS, and NMR methods. Screening of the new sulfonyl esters' in vitro cytotoxic activities against human epithelial cervical carcinoma (HeLa) and normal human fibroblast (MRC-5) cell lines by the MTT method was performed. The five most active were selected and further tested on HeLa, MRC-5, and MCF-7 (breast carcinoma) cell lines. The examined compounds exhibit strong in vitro anticancer activities with moderate-to-high selectivity, inducing apoptotic cell death and cell cycle arrest in both HeLa and MCF-7 cell lines, but have little to no effect on the non-cancerous MRC-5 cell line.