ArticleHurysz B, Evans BA, Laryea RN, Boyer BE, Coburn TE, Dexter MS, Edwards MA, Faulkner GV, Huss RL, Lafferty MM, Manning M, McNulty M, Melvin SJ, Mitrow CM, Patel RR, Pierce K, Russo J, Seminer AM, Sockett KA, Webster NR, Cole KE, Mowery P, Pelkey ET.
Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2023 06 15;90:129347.
Due to the central role of tubulin in various cellular functions, it is a validated target for anti-cancer therapeutics. However, many of the current tubulin inhibitors are derived from complex natural products and suffer from multidrug resistance, low solubility, toxicity issues, and/or the lack of multi-cancer efficacy. As such, there is a continued need for the discovery and development of new anti-tubulin drugs to enter the pipeline. Herein we report on a group of indole-substituted furanones that were prepared and tested for anti-cancer activity. Molecular docking studies showed positive correlations between favorable binding in the colchicine binding site (CBS) of tubulin and anti-proliferative activity, and the most potent compound was found to inhibit tubulin polymerization. These compounds represent a promising new structural motif in the search for small heterocyclic CBS cancer inhibitors.
