Synthesis of 6-Halo-Substituted Pericosine A and an Evaluation of Their Antitumor and Antiglycosidase Activities

The enantiomers of 6-fluoro-, 6-bromo-, and 6-iodopericosine A were synthesized. An efficient synthesis of both enantiomers of pericoxide via 6-bromopericosine A was also developed. These 6-halo-substituted pericosine A derivatives were evaluated in terms of their antitumor activity against three types of tumor cells (p388, L1210, and HL-60) and glycosidase inhibitory activity. The bromo- and iodo-congeners exhibited moderate antitumor activity similar to pericosine A against the three types of tumor cell lines studied. The fluorinated compound was less active than the others, including pericosine A. In the antitumor assay, no significant difference in potency between the enantiomers was observed for any of the halogenated compounds. Meanwhile, the (-)-6-fluoro- and (-)-6-bromo-congeners inhibited alpha-glucosidase to a greater extent than those of their corresponding (+)-enantiomers, whereas (+)-iodopericosine A showed increased activity when compared to its (-)-enantiomer.