Synthesis of a new class of furo[3,2-c]coumarins and its anticancer activity

A series of furo[3,2-c]coumarin derivatives 1a-d were synthesized and evaluated for their antiproliferative activity against MCF-7 breast and HCT-15 colon cancer cell lines using Sulfo-rhodamine B (SRB) assay. Compounds 1b and 1d showed higher antiproliferative activity than 1a and 1c. UV-Vis spectroscopy was used for DNA and BSA-binding affinity of the compounds 1b and 1d and gave overall affinity constants of K1b-DNA = 8.1 x 10(3) M-1, K1d-DNA = 1.1 X 10(4) M-1, K1b-BSA = 5.1 x 10(4) M-1, and K1d-BSA = 7.6 x 10(4) M-1. Our findings could provide new evidence showing the relationship between the chemical structure and anticancer activity of these new coumarin analogs. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.