An Improved Method for the Synthesis of the of Indole[2,3-a]Pyrrolo[3,4-c]Carbazole-5,6-Dione N-Glycosides and their Cytotoxic Activity

Abstract

Use of formylindolylacetic acid as a reagent at the stage of preparing the glycosides of bis(indolyl)furan-2,5-diones and dioxane as solvent increased yields from 5 – 10% to 60 – 63%, decreased the duration of the reaction from 6 h to 2 h, and significantly simplified extraction of products adequate for use at the next stage of photochemical oxidation to furancarbazole derivatives. New data are presented on the cytotoxic activity of the indocarbazole N-glycosides synthesized here, covering a wide range of cell structures and giving a more complete view of the antiproliferative properties of the compounds synthesized.