New cyano-acrylamide derivatives incorporating the thiophene moiety: Synthesis, anti-cancer, gene expression, DNA fragmentation, DNA damage, and in silico studies

Abstract

New cyano-acrylamide derivatives bearing the thiophene structure were prepared and rigorously characterized. Thus, the reaction of diethyl 5-(2-cyanoacetamido)-3-methylthiophene-2,4-dicarboxylate with aldehydes in the presence of piperidine afforded the title compounds in very good to excellent yields (range 81-96%, mean 91%). All the newly synthesized compounds were evaluated as anti-cancer agents against five human cancer cell lines namely, MCF7 (human Caucasian breast adenocarcinoma), PC3 (human prostate cancer cell line), HepG2 (Human hepatocellular carcinoma), PACA2 (epithelial cell line derived from tumor tissue of pancreas), and BJ1 (normal skin fibroblast). While most of the compounds showed good activity against MCF-7, they showed limited activity against PC3, HepG2, and PACA2. Compound 9 showed potent anti-cancer activity against the PACA2 cell line with IC50 131.18 µM compared with the reference drug (doxorubicin, IC50 52.06 µM), while compound 10 exhibited potent anti-cancer activity against HePG2 cell lines with IC50 24.51 µM compared to the positive control (doxorubicin, IC50 39.73 µM). The gene expression, DNA fragmentation, and DNA damage of the most promising compounds were discussed. Additionally, compounds 9 and 10 showed favorable binding energies and strong interactions with CDK2, EGFR, ERα, VEGFFR, and Topoisomerase II receptors in the molecular docking simulation. These results suggest that these compounds have the potential to be effective candidates for anti-cancer therapy. Additionally, the in-silico ADMET profiles indicated that these compounds adhere to the Lipinski rules, indicating favorable physicochemical properties. These findings further support their potential for continued drug development efforts.