Substituted xanthones as selective and reversible monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) inhibitors.

1,3-Dihydroxy-2-methylxanthone (X1), its 4-chloro and 4-bromo derivatives (X1-Cl and X1-Br), and 1,3-dihydroxy-4-methylxanthone were investigated for their inhibition activities toward MAO. A hyperbolic function was derived to fit the data and to calculate IC50 values. The compounds proved to be reversible and selective inhibitors of MAO-A, with X1 displaying the highest activity (IC50 = 3.7 microM).