Novel (Z)-3-((4,6-diphenylpyrimidin-2-ylamino)methylene)-2,3-dihydrochromen-4-one derivatives were designed and synthesized to find chemotherapeutic agents. Derivative 9 was selected based on its clonogenicity against cancer cells and synthetic yield for further biological experiments. It showed decreases in aurora kinase A, B, and C phosphorylation from western blot analysis. Derivative 9 upregulated the expression of G1 cell cycle inhibitory proteins including p21 and p27, and G1 progressive cyclin D1, and downregulated G1-to-S progressive cyclins, resulting in cell cycle arrest at the G1/S boundary. It stimulated the cleavage of caspase-9, -3, -7, and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase, resulting in triggering apoptosis through a caspase-dependent pathway. In addition, derivative 9 inhibited in vivo tumor growth in a syngeneic tumor implantation mouse model. The findings of this study suggest that derivative 9 can be considered as a lead compound for chemotherapeutic agents.
Keywords: 3-(Pyrimidin-2-ylaminomethylene)-2; 3-Dihydrochromen-4-one; Anti-cancer; Apoptosis; Aurora kinases; Cell cycle arrest; Clonogenic long-term survival assay.
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