Streamlined Total Synthesis of Trioxa­carcins and Its Application to the Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Analogues Thereof. Discovery of Simpler Designed and Potent Trioxa­carcin Analogues

A streamlined total synthesis of the naturally occurring antitumor agents trioxa­carcins is described, along with its application to the construction of a series of designed analogues of these complex natural products. Biological evaluation of the synthesized compounds revealed a number of highly potent, and yet structurally simpler, compounds that are effective against certain cancer cell lines, including a drug-resistant line. A novel one-step synthesis of anthra­quinones and chloro anthra­quinones from simple ketone precursors and phenyl­selenyl chloride is also described. The reported work, featuring novel chemistry and cascade reactions, has potential applications in cancer therapy, including targeted approaches as in antibody–drug conjugates.