Quinazolinone Alkaloid Research Articles

Antitumor Activity of Quinazolinone Alkaloids Inspired by Marine Natural Products.

Many fungal quinazolinone metabolites, which contain the methyl-indole pyrazino [1,2-b]quinazoline-3,6-dione core, have been found to possess promising antitumor activity. The purpose of this work was to synthesize the enantiomeric pairs of two members of this quinazolinone family, to explore their potential as antitumor and their ability to revert multidrug resistance. The marine natural product fiscalin B (4c), and antienantiomers (4b, 5b, and 5c) were synthesized via a one-pot approach, while the syn enantiomers (4a, 4d, 5a, and 5d) were synthetized by a multi-step procedure. These strategies used anthranilic acid (i), chiral N-protected α-amino acids (ii), and tryptophan methyl esters (iii) to form the core ring of pyrazino[2,1-b]quinazoline-3,6-dione scaffold. Four enantiomeric pairs, with different enantiomeric purities, were obtained with overall yields ranging from 7 to 40%. Compounds 4a–d and 5a–d were evaluated for their growth inhibitory effect against two tumor cell lines. Differences between enantiomeric pairs were noted and 5a–d displayed GI50 values ranging from 31 to 52 μM, which are lower than those of 4a–d. Nevertheless, no effect on P-glycoprotein (P-gp) modulation was observed for all compounds. This study disclosed new data for fiscalin B (4c), as well as for its analogues for a future development of novel anticancer drug leads.

Ruthenium-Catalyzed Regioselective Alkenylation/Tandem Hydroamidative Cyclization of Unmasked Quinazolinones Using Terminal Alkynes.

Ruthenium-catalyzed amide directed Csp2-H activation of the quinazolinone scaffold has been demonstrated, leading to the selective mono- or dialkenylation in moderate to good yields to achieve medicinally important stilbene containing quinazolinones. The terminal alkyne is utilized as a coupling partner, which resulted in the selective trans-alkene formation. Electron-deficient phenylacetylenes facilitate alkenylation followed by tandem hydroamidation of the newly generated trans-double bond to provide novel quinazolinone alkaloids related to the Luotonine class of natural products.

Halofuginone‐induced autophagy suppresses the migration and invasion of MCF‐7 cells via regulation of STMN1 and p53

Traditional Chinese medicines have been recognized as especially promising anticancer agents in modern anticancer research. Halofuginone (HF), an analog of quinazolinone alkaloid extracted from Dichroa febrifuga, is widely used in traditional medicine. However, whether HF inhibits the growth of breast cancer cells and/or reduces the migration and invasion of MCF-7 human breast cancer cells, as well as the underlying mechanisms in vitro, remains unclear. In this study, we report that an HF extract inhibits the growth of MCF-7 cells and reduces their migration and invasion, an important feature of potential anticancer agents. In addition, HF significantly increases the activation of autophagy, which is closely associated with tumor metastasis. As STMN1 and p53 have been closely implicated in breast cancer progression, we analyzed their expression in the context of HF extract treatment. Western blot analysis showed that HF suppresses STMN1 and p53 expression and activity in an autophagy-dependent manner. Collectively, these data indicate that activation of autophagy reduces expression of STMN1 and p53, and the migration and invasion of cancer cells contributes to the anti-cancer effects of the HF. These findings may provide new insight into breast cancer prevention and therapy.

Synthesis of 1-Thio-Substituted Isoquinoline Derivatives by Tandem Cyclization of Isothiocyanates.

A copper-catalyzed tandem arylation-cyclization process to access 1-(arylthio)isoquinolines from isothiocyanates and diaryliodonium salts is described. It is the first general method to construct the potentially useful 1-(arylthio)isoquinoline derivatives. Moreover, 1-(methylthio)isoquinoline derivatives were also achieved successfully with MeOTf instead of diaryliodonium salts under metal-free conditions. Mechanistic studies reveal that these two processes proceed in different routes. This method has been successfully applied to the synthesis of quinazolinone alkaloid rutaecarpine.

Adsorption characteristics and preparative separation of chaetominine from Aspergillus fumigatus mycelia by macroporous resin.

Chaetominine (CHA) is a quinazolinone alkaloid with strong anti-cancer activity produced by Aspergillus fumigatus CY018. For recovering CHA from A. fumigates efficiently, adsorption and desorption capacities of eight macroporous resins were tested in this work. Based on batch experiments, XAD-16 resin was revealed the best adsorption and desorption performance among all the tested resins. Then, adsorption kinetics and adsorption isotherms were constructed on XAD-16 resin, and the experimental data were fitted well to the pseudo first-order kinetics and Freundlick isotherm model. In the dynamic adsorption and desorption, the purity of CHA increased from 0.0314% (w/w) in the crude extract to 57.86% in the final product with recovery yield of 70.56% by a one-step treatment. Moreover, the experiments were also performed in a lab scale-up scale, in which the purity and recovery of CHA were 56.12% (w/w) and 68.02%, respectively. In addition, XAD-16 resin could be recycled 3 times for CHA separation after regeneration without adverse effects on adsorption/desorption performance. These results suggested that XAD-16 resin adsorption could act as a useful and economic method for recovering CHA from A. fumigatus.

ChemInform Abstract: Recent Developments in the Chemistry of Quinazolinone Alkaloids

AbstractReview: [53 refs.

ChemInform Abstract: Low‐Valent Titanium‐Mediated Enantioselective Synthesis of Quinazolinone Alkaloids Circumdatins F, H, and Analogues.

ChemInform Abstract: Low‐Valent Titanium‐Mediated Enantioselective Synthesis of Quinazolinone Alkaloids Circumdatins F, H, and Analogues.

Low‐Valent Titanium‐Mediated Enantioselective Synthesis of Quinazolinone Alkaloids Circumdatins F, H, and Analogs

AbstractWe report the concise and protecting‐group‐free enantioselective total syntheses of circumdatins F and H. In view of the extreme importance of analogs of quinazolinone alkaloids in drug research and discovery, four analogs of bioactive quinazolinobenzodiazepine alkaloids, including demethoxycircumdatin H (12) and N‐demethylbenzomalvin A (13), have been synthesized. The method is based on the low‐valent titanium‐promoted intramolecular reductive coupling of imides with o‐nitrobenzimides, which yielded quinazolino[3,2‐a][1,4]benzodiazepines under mild conditions. In addition, heptacyclic dehydraasperlicin E (16) has been synthesized from asperlicin C by a NCS‐mediated dehydra‐cyclization reaction.

Bioprospection of cytotoxic compounds in fungal strains recovered from sediments of the Brazilian coast.

The cytotoxic activities of extracts (50 μg/ml) from 48 fungal strains, recovered from sediments of Pecém's offshore port terminal (Northeast coast of Brazil), against HCT-116 colon cancer cell lines were investigated. The most promising extract was obtained from strain BRF082, identified as Dichotomomyces cejpii by phylogenetic analyses of partial RPB2 gene sequence. Thus, it was selected for bioassay-guided isolation of the cytotoxic compounds. Large-scale fermentation of BRF082 in potato dextrose broth, followed by chromatographic purification of the bioactive fractions from the liquid medium, yielded gliotoxin (4) and its derivatives acetylgliotoxin G (3), bis(dethio)bis(methylsulfanyl)gliotoxin (1), acetylgliotoxin (5), 6-acetylbis(dethio)bis(methylsulfanyl)gliotoxin (2), besides the quinazolinone alkaloid fiscalin B. All isolated compounds were tested for their cytotoxicities against the tumor cell lines HCT-116, revealing 4 and 3 as the most cytotoxic ones (IC50 0.41 and 1.06 μg/ml, resp.).

Recent developments in the chemistry of quinazolinone alkaloids.

Quinazolinones, an important class of fused heterocyclic alkaloids has attracted high attention in organic and medicinal chemistry due to their significant and wide range of biological activities. There are approximately 150 naturally occurring quinazolinone alkaloids known till 2005. Several new quinazolinone alkaloids (∼55) have been isolated in the last decade. Natural quinazolinones with exotic structural features and remarkable biological activities have incited a lot of activities in the synthetic community towards the development of new synthetic strategies and approaches for the total synthesis of quinazolinone alkaloids. This review is focused on these advances in the chemistry of quinazolinone alkaloids in the last decade. This article covers the newly isolated quinazolinone natural products with their biological activities and the recently reported total syntheses of quinazolinone alkaloids from 2006 to 2015.

Copper‐Catalyzed Aerobic Oxidative Annulation and Carbon‐Carbon Bond Cleavage of Arylacetamides: Domino Synthesis of Fused Quinazolinones

AbstractAn efficient copper‐catalyzed tandem aerobic oxidative annulation and carbon‐carbon bond cleavage reaction was developed from easily accessible arylacetamides, which provides a direct approach for the domino synthesis of a vast array of tricyclic or tetracyclic fused quinazolinone alkaloid structures. A plausible reaction mechanism is proposed involving an aerobic benzylic oxidation/cyclization/decarbonylation cascade.magnified image

New Metabolites from the Algal Associated Marine-derived Fungus Aspergillus Carneus

The new oxepin-containing (1) and quinazolinone (2) alkaloids and new dihydrobenzofuran derivative (3) have been isolated from a marine strain of Aspergillus carneus KMM 4638. The structures of these metabolites were determined by HR-MS and 1D and 2D NMR, along with Marfey's method.

Aniquinazolines A–D, Four New Quinazolinone Alkaloids from Marine-Derived Endophytic Fungus Aspergillus nidulans

Four new quinazolinone alkaloids, namely, aniquinazolines A–D (1–4), were isolated and identified from the culture of Aspergillus nidulans MA-143, an endophytic fungus obtained from the leaves of marine mangrove plant Rhizophora stylosa. The structures of the new compounds were elucidated by spectroscopic analysis, and their absolute configurations were determined on the basis of chiral HPLC analysis of the acidic hydrolysates. The structure for 1 was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. All these compounds were examined for antibacterial and cytotoxic activity as well as brine shrimp (Artemia salina) lethality.

Selective copper(II) acetate and potassium iodide catalyzed oxidation of aminals to dihydroquinazoline and quinazolinone alkaloids

Copper(II) acetate/acetic acid/O2 and potassium iodide/tert-butylhydroperoxide systems are shown to affect the selective oxidation of ring-fused aminals to dihydroquinazolines and quinazolinones, respectively. These methods enable the facile preparation of a number of quinazoline alkaloid natural products and their analogues.

Facile Access to Ring-Fused Aminals via Direct α-Amination of Secondary Amines with o-Aminobenzaldehydes: Synthesis of Vasicine, Deoxyvasicine, Deoxyvasicinone, Mackinazolinone, and Ruteacarpine

Secondary amines undergo redox-neutral reactions with aminobenzaldehydes under conventional and microwave heating to furnish polycyclic aminals via amine α-amination/N-alkylation. This unique α-functionalization reaction proceeds without the involvement of transition metals or other additives. The resulting aminal products are precursors for various quinazolinone alkaloids and their analogues.

Survey of Recent Literature Related to the Biologically Active 4(3H)-Quinazolinones Containing Fused Heterocycles

The present review focuses on the synthesis and biological evaluation of polycyclic 4(3H)-quinazolinones containing fused aromatic or heteroaromatic rings. The first part of the review is related to compounds with ring fused to the pyrimidine part of the quinazoline core. Most of the quinazolinone alkaloids belong to this class of molecules. The second part presents molecules bearing extra ring(s) fused to the benzo moiety of the quinazolinone skeleton. Their structural diversity opens new fields in the search of active molecules.

Inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-2 by halofuginone is mediated by the Egr1 transcription factor

Halofuginone, a low-molecular-weight quinazolinone alkaloid that inhibits collagen α1(I), has been shown to suppress cancer growth, metastasis, and angiogenesis. These activities were attributed in part to the inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2). The present study was carried out to explore the molecular mechanism underlying this effect. We found a marked (50%) inhibition in MMP-2 gelatinolytic activity in human breast cancer MDA-MB-435 cells pretreated with as little as 50 ng/ml of halofuginone, a concentration that markedly inhibited their invasive and proliferative capacities. We further show that both early growth response 1 (Egr-1) and Nab-2 (corepressor of Egr1 activation) are upregulated by halofuginone in a dose-dependent and time-dependent (up to 5 h) manner. Using MMP-2 reporter gene and chromatin immunoprecipitation analyses, we found that Egr-1 binds to the MMP-2 promoter and inhibits its activity. Altogether, our results identify the downstream elements (Egr-1, Nab-2, and MMP-2) by which halofuginone exerts its antitumoral effect, thereby advancing its potential therapeutic application as an anticancer drug.

Halofuginone inhibits multiple myeloma growth in vitro and in vivo and enhances cytotoxicity of conventional and novel agents

Multiple Myeloma (MM), a malignancy of plasma cells, remains incurable despite the use of conventional and novel therapies. Halofuginone (HF), a synthetic derivative of quinazolinone alkaloid, has recently been shown to have anti-cancer activity in various preclinical settings. This study demonstrated the anti-tumour activity of HF against a panel of human MM cell lines and primary patient-derived MM cells, regardless of their sensitivity to conventional therapy or novel agents. HF showed anti-MM activity in vivo using a myeloma xenograft mouse model. HF suppressed proliferation of myeloma cells alone and when co-cultured with bone marrow stromal cells. Similarly, HF induced apoptosis in MM cells even in the presence of insulin-like growth factor 1 or interleukin 6. Importantly, HF, even at high doses, did not induce cytotoxicity against CD40 activated peripheral blood mononuclear cells from normal donors. HF treatment induced accumulation of cells in the G(0) /G(1) cell cycle and induction of apoptotic cell death associated with depletion of mitochondrial membrane potential; cleavage of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase and caspases-3, 8 and 9 as well as down-regulation of anti-apoptotic proteins including Mcl-1 and X-IAP. Multiplex analysis of phosphorylation of diverse components of signalling cascades revealed that HF induced changes in P38MAPK activation; increased phosphorylation of c-jun, c-jun NH(2)-terminal kinase (JNK), p53 and Hsp-27. Importantly, HF triggered synergistic cytotoxicity in combination with lenalidomide, melphalan, dexamethasone, and doxorubicin. Taken together, these preclinical studies provide the preclinical framework for future clinical studies of HF in MM.

ChemInform Abstract: Antifungal Quinazolinones from Marine‐Derived Bacillus cereus and Their Preparation.

AbstractThe novel quinazolinone alkaloids (I) and (II) are isolated along with seven known analogues from the BuOH extract of the marine‐derived bacterium Bacillus cereus.

Recent Advances in the Studies on Luotonins

Luotonins are alkaloids from the aerial parts of Peganum nigellastrum Bunge. that display three major skeleton types. Luotonins A, B, and E are pyrroloquinazolino-quinoline alkaloids, luotonins C and D are canthin-6-one alkaloids, and luotonin F is a 4(3H)-quinazolinone alkaloid. All six luotonins have shown promising cytotoxicities towards selected human cancer cell lines, especially against leukemia P-388 cells. Luotonin A is the most active one, with its activity stemming from topoisomerase I-dependent DNA-cleavage. Such intriguing biological activities and unique structures have led not only to the development of synthetic methods for the efficient synthesis of these compounds, but also to interest in structural modifications for improving the biological properties. Recent progress in the study of luotonins is covered.