Anticancer activity of novel 3-azaxanthenes

Novel 3-azaxanthenes have been synthesized via acid-catalyzed one-pot Friedel–Crafts reaction of pyridoxal/pyridoxal-5'-phosphate with naphthols followed by dehydration of the intermediate bis(2-hydroxyaryl)-(pyridin-4-yl)methane derivatives. The cytotoxicity of the obtained 3-azaxanthenes against M-HeLa and HuTu-80 tumor cell lines is comparable to that of tamoxifen, whereas the cytotoxicity against normal cell line is absent in the tested concentrations range, which makes this class of compounds interesting for further studies.