Investigations on dendrimer space reveal solid and liquid tumor growth-inhibition by original phosphorus-based dendrimers and the corresponding monomers and dendrons with ethacrynic acid motifs.

The well-known reactive diuretic ethacrynic acid (EA, Edecrin), with low antiproliferative activities, was chemically modified and grafted onto phosphorus dendrimers and the corresponding simple branched phosphorus dendron-like derivatives affording novel nanodevices showing moderate to strong antiproliferative activities against liquid and solid tumor cell lines, respectively.