Synthesis, Characterization and Anti-hepatoma Activity of New Hederagenin Derivatives

Based on the biological significance of hederagenin-type saponins found in our previous investigation, a series of new hederagenin derivatives were designed and synthesized.Their in vitro antiproliferative activities were evaluated against the HepG2 liver cancer cell line and normal cell line L929 by MTT assay.The preliminary bioassay results demonstrated that all the tested compounds 1-7 showed potent anti-hepatoma activities, and some compounds exhibited better effects than 5-fluorouracil against human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cell line. Furthermore, compound 5 showed a significant antihepatoma activity against HepG2 cells with an IC50 value of 1.88 µM. Besides, all of the tested compounds showed a low cytotoxic effect against the normal cell line L929.All the compounds 1-7 displayed superior selectivity against human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cell line, and the results suggest that the structural modifications of C ring on the hederagenin backbone are vital for modulating anti-hepatoma activities.