Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of α-Tocopherol Derivatives as Potential Anticancer Agents

a-Tocopheryl succinate (a-TS) and a-tocopheryloxyacetic acid (a-TEA) are potent inducers of apoptosis in cancer cells and efficient suppressors of tumors in experimental model cancer cell lines. They exhibit selective cytotoxicity against tumor cells and very limited or no toxicity toward nonmalignant cells. In the present work, a series of new a-tocopherol derivatives were synthesized as analogs of a-TS and a-TEA. The cytotoxic activity of obtained compounds was tested using three human cancer cell lines, including chronic lymphoblastic leukemia (CEM), breast adenocarcinoma (MCF7), cervical adenocarcinoma (HeLa), and normal human fibroblasts (BJ). The introduction of an alkyl substituent into the ether-linked acetic acid moiety in a-TEA increased anticancer activity. a-Tocopheryloxy-2-methylpropanoic acid with two additional geminal methyl groups was more active against CEM cells compared to a-TEA and non-toxic to normal cells. In order to acquire a deeper understanding of the biological activity of synthesized compounds, a molecular docking study was also conducted. Our research confirmed that vitamin E derivatives are interesting and valuable compounds in terms of their potential therapeutic use as anticancer agents.

Automated summary

a-TS and a-TEA are effective compounds for inducing apoptosis in cancer cells and suppressing tumor growth, while showing limited or no toxicity towards nonmalignant cells. The introduction of an alkyl substituent in a-TEA increased its anticancer activity, with a-Tocopheryloxy-2-methylpropanoic acid being more active and non-toxic to normal cells. Molecular docking study further supported the biological activity of the synthesized compounds. This research confirmed the potential therapeutic use of vitamin E derivatives as anticancer agents.