5-Ene-4-thiazolidinones induce apoptosis in mammalian leukemia cells

The article presents the synthesis of 5-ene-4-thiazolidinone derivatives with pyrazole core linked by enamine group. The structure and purity of compounds were confirmed by analytical and spectral data including X-ray analysis. Target compounds were screened for their anticancer activity and selective antileukemic action was confirmed. 5-[5-(2-Hydroxyphenyl)-3-phenyl-4,5-dihydropyrazol-1-ylmethylene]-3-(3-acetoxyphenyl)-2-thioxothiazolidin-4-one (compound 1) was selected as most active agent against HL-60 and HL-60/ADR cell lines; IC50 = 118 nM/HL-60 with low toxicity towards pseudonormal cells. The mitochondria-depended apoptosis was identified as the main mode of 1 action. Moreover compound's effect induces G0/G1 arrest of the treated cells and causes inhibition of cell division and is related with activation of ROS production.