Design, synthesis and antiproliferative activity of indole analogues of indanocine

The design and synthesis of a novel series of indole-analogues of indanocine is reported, together with their antiproliferative activity in the NCI's panel of cancer cell lines. Indanocine displays potent activity against a wide range of cancer cell lines (mean GI(50) < 20 nM), including drug-resistant cancer cell lines, and also inhibits the migration of metastatic cancer cells. A number of the described indole-analogues display a similar activity profile to indanocine, exhibiting potent antiproliferative activities in several cancer cell lines, and offer new leads for further development.