Reactions of 2-acyloxyisobutyryl halides with nucleosides. 7. Synthesis and biological evaluation of some 2,2'-anhydro-1(3',5'-di-O-acyl-beta-D-arabinofuranosyl)cytosine hydrochlorides.

The direct acylation of 2,2'-anhydro-1(beta-D-arabinofuranosyl)cytosine hydrochloride (cycloC) with a homologous series of saturated and unsaturated acyl chlorides in dimethylacetamide has been investigated. Such acylation reactions have made available a considerable number of 3',5'-diesters of cycloC that have been examined for biological activities. The compounds all show cytotoxicity against HeLa cells in tissue culture, and with the exception of the highly insoluble long-chain diesters (C16--C22), show pronounced activity against vaccinia and Herpes simplex viruses. Against L1210 leukemia in mice the compounds show varied activities, the C12--C14 saturated diesters and the C18--C22 unsaturated diesters being highly effective. Other diesters, varying by only a few methylene groups, show dramatically different results.