Synthesis and biological activity against Trypanosoma cruzi of substituted 1,4-naphthoquinones

Abstract The discovery and development of essential drugs for Chagas disease is a major concern worldwide. New substituted 1,4-naphthoquinones were synthesized and tested against the infective bloodstream form of Trypanosoma cruzi , the etiological agent of Chagas disease. These products exhibited substantial activity against T. cruzi , especially 2-((8E,11Z)-heptadeca-8,11-dienyl)-3-hydroxynaphthalene-1,4-dione ( 9 ) with IC 50 of 7.8 μM.