Cancer is the second leading cause of death around the world. Curcumin is a phytopolyphenol, a nutraceutical powdered rhizome of <i>Curcuma longa</i> that has been reported to possess notable anticancer activity. However, it has low bioavailability due to low aqueous solubility and extensive metabolic conversion of the molecule into degradation products and curcumin conjugates, which are then readily excreted from the body. In this research, six curcumin analogues are synthesized using aldol condensation, Wittig reaction, and Claisen condensation. The molecules synthesized will have one of the curcumin aromatic rings preserved while the other half will be replaced with a heteroaromatic ring. This work will discuss the synthesis and the cytotoxic analysis of the six new analogs of curcumin and the evaluation of their cytotoxic properties using MTT assay against HT29-colon cells using MTT.

Synthesis of heteroaromatic analogues of curcumin

ACS Spring 2022

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