Synthesis and biological activity of flavanone derivatives.

A series of new flavanone derivatives of farrerol was synthesized by a convenient method. The in vitro anti-tumor activity of these compounds was evaluated against human Bel-7402, HL-60, BGC-823 and KB cell lines, the protein tyrosine kinase (PTK) inhibitor activity was also tested. Their cytoprotective activity was tested using hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced injury in human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Their in vitro anti-atherosclerosis activity was tested on vascular smooth muscle cells by the MTT method using tetrandrine as a positive contrast drug. The structures of all compounds synthesized were confirmed by 1H, 13C NMR and ESI-MS. Most of the compounds exhibited good pharmacological activity and the preliminary structure-activity relationships were described. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.