Synthesis, cytotoxicity, and haemolytic activity of chacotrioside lupane-type neosaponins and their germanicane-type rearrangement products

The concise synthesis, via a stepwise glycosylation approach, of lupeol, betulin and betulinic acid O-glycosides bearing a chacotriosyl moiety at the C-3 position is described. All neosaponins as well as their rearrangement products of the germanicane-type were evaluated in vitro for their anticancer and haemolytic activities. Although betulinic acid and betulin 3β-O-chacotriosides were neither cytotoxic nor haemolytic, their rearrangement products allobetulin and 28-oxoallobetulin 3β-O-chacotriosides (9 and 10) exhibited a cytotoxicity profile up to fourfold superior to betulinic acid against human breast (MCF7) and prostate (PC-3) adenocarcinomas cell lines (IC50 = 10–18 μM). One important result was that only chacotriosides featuring non-polar functions at the C-28 position (6, 9 and 10) exerted a haemolytic activity against red blood cells.

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