Identification of a new bisindolinone arresting IGROV1 cells proliferation

In an initial screening, a series of novel Knoevenagel adducts were submitted to the National Cancer Institute for evaluation of antitumor activity in human cell lines. In particular, compound 5f showed remarkable selectivity against IGROV1, an ovarian cancer cell line, without affecting healthy human fibroblast cells. Analyses of cytotoxicity, cell proliferation, cell migration, epigenetic changes, gene expression, and DNA damage were performed to obtain detailed information about its antitumor properties. Our results show that 5f causes proliferation arrest, decrease in motility, histone hyperacetylation, downregulation of cyclin D1 and α5 subunit of integrin β1 gene transcription. In addition, 5f treatment reduces transcript and protein levels of cyclin D1, which increases sensitivity to ionizing radiation and results in DNA damage comparable to cyclin D1 gene silencing.