Synthesis and antitumoral activity of novel 3-(2-substituted-1,3,4-oxadiazol-5-yl) and 3-(5-substituted-1,2,4-triazol-3-yl) β-carboline derivatives

Several novel 1-substituted-phenyl β-carbolines bearing the 2-substituted-1,3,4-oxadiazol-5-yl and 5-substituted-1,2,4-triazol-3-yl groups at C-3 were synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro anticancer activity. The assay results pointed thirteen compounds with growth inhibition effect (GI50 < 100 μM) for all eight different types of human cancer cell lines tested. The β-carbolines 7a and 7h, bearing the 3-(2-metylthio-1,3,4-oxadiazol-5-yl) group, displayed high selectivity and potent anticancer activity against ovarian cell line with GI50 values lying in the nanomolar concentration range (GI50 = 10 nM for both compounds). The 1-(N,N-dimethylaminophenyl)-3-(5-thioxo-1,2,4-triazol-3-yl) β-carboline (8g) was the most active compound, showing particular effectiveness on lung (GI50 = 0.06 μM), ovarian and renal cell lines. The potent anticancer activity presented for synthesized compounds 7a, 7h, and 8g, together with their easiness of synthesis, makes these compounds promising anticancer agents.

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