Iodophenyl tagged sphingosine derivatives: synthesis and preliminary biological evaluation

A facile synthesis of six 4-iodophenyl tagged sphingosine (SP) derivatives bearing alkyl chain lengths from 6 to 13 is described. The key steps for the assembly of these molecules, 5a-f, are Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling and cross-metathesis reactions. The feasibility of radiolabeling was demonstrated by synthesizing two (125)I labeled compounds, [(125)I]5c and [(125)I]5e. In vitro enzyme assays indicated that the molecules, 5c-e, are potent inhibitors. Thus, they deserve further evaluation as potential radioactive probes for tumor imaging.