Antiproliferative activity and synthesis of 8-prenylnaringenin derivatives by demethylation of 7-O-and 4’-O-substituted isoxanthohumols

Abstract

Several analogues of 7-O-and 40-O-substituted isoxanthohumol and 8-prenylnaringenin, the strongest known phytoestrogen and potential anticancerogenic agent, were synthesized. Acyl, alkyl, and allyl derivatives of isoxanthohumol underwent the demethylation process using MgI2 × 2Et2O in anhydrous THF with the yields of 61-89%. Some of the compounds approached the international criteria of antiproliferative activity (4μg/ml) for synthetic agents against the human cancer cell lines.