Identification of Novel Cyanopyridones and Pyrido[2,3-d]Pyrimidines as Anticancer Agents with Dual VEGFR-2/HER-2 Inhibitory Action: Synthesis, Biological Evaluation and Molecular Docking Studies

Abstract

In the current work, we designed and synthesized three families of non-fused and fused compounds based on cyanopyridone: derivatives of 6-amino-1,2-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbonitrile (<b>5a-f</b>) and 3,4,7,8-tetrahydro pyrimidine-6-carbonitrile (<b>6a-b</b> and <b>7a-e</b>). The newly synthesized compounds' structure were determined using a variety of techniques, including ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, mass spectrum, infrared spectroscopy, and elemental analysis. The developed compounds were tested for the ability to inhibit the growth of breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7) and hepatic adenocarcinoma (HepG2) cell lines using MTT assay. Some of the synthesized compounds were more effective towards the cancer cell lines than the standard treatment taxol. The best antiproliferative activities were demonstrated by non-fused cyanopyridones <b>5a</b> and <b>5e</b> against the MCF-7 cell line (IC₅₀ = 1.77 and 1.39 μM, respectively) and by compounds <b>6b</b> and <b>5a</b> against the HepG2 cell line (IC₅₀ = 2.68 and 2.71 μM, respectively). We further explored <b>5a</b> and <b>5e</b>, the two most potent compounds against the MCF-7 cell line, for their ability to inhibit VEGFR-2 and HER-2. Finally, docking and molecular dynamics simulations were performed as part of the molecular modeling investigation to elucidate the molecular binding modes of the tested compounds, allowing for a more thorough comprehension of the activity of compounds <b>5a</b> and <b>5e</b>.