Phosphatidylcholine with cis-9,trans-11 and trans-10,cis-12 Conjugated Linoleic Acid Isomers: Synthesis and Cytotoxic Studies

Novel phosphatidylcholines and lysophosphatidylcholines with cis-9,trans-11 and trans-10,cis-12 conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) were synthesized in high yields (75–99 %). The in vitro cytotoxic activities of these compounds against three human cancer cell lines (HL-60, MCF-7, and HT-29) were evaluated. The results revealed that there are differences in the activity between phosphatidylcholine with cis-9,trans-11 and trans-10,cis-12 CLA acyl groups. 1,2-Di(9Z,11E)-octadecadienoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine was the most potent cytotoxic agent among all tested CLA derivatives and its IC50 (concentration of a compound that inhibits the proliferation of 50 % of the cancer cell population) was 29.4 µM against HL-60. Moreover, phosphatidylcholines with CLA acyls exhibited much lower cytotoxicity against non-cancer cells (Balb/3T3) than free CLA isomers.