NEW BETULIN NITRATES: SYNTHESIS, CYTOTOXIC ACTIVITY AND MOLECULAR DOCKING EVALUATION

Betulin and its derivatives have been reported to affect several key genes of cell-cycle regulators. However, their specific targets haven’t yet been discovered. As an important cell cycle regulator, Cyclin-dependent kinase-2 (CDK2) has become a potential target for cancer therapy. Here we describe the design, synthesis and antitumor activities in vitro of eleven new betulin nitrates. The results revealed that compound (20) possesses potent antitumor activity against MCF-7 cell lines (IC50 < 10 μM). In order to investigate potential protein target, betulin nitrates were subjected to docking studies with CDK2. Compound (20) showed very good binding affinity for CDK2 via hydrogen bonding interactions. Thus, the CDK2 inhibitory potential could make compound (20) possible candidate as antitumor agent.