Synthesis and in vitro anticancer activities of selenium N-heterocyclic carbene compounds.

Fourteen novel selenium N-heterocyclic carbene (Se-NHC) compounds derived from 4,5-diarylimidazole were designed, synthesized, and evaluated as antiproliferative agents. Most of them were more effective towards A2780 ovarian cancer cells than HepG2 hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. Among them, the most active compound 2b was about 4-fold more active than the positive control ebselen against A2780 cells. In addition, this compound displayed 2-fold higher cytotoxicity to A2780 cells than to IOSE80 normal ovarian epithelial cells. Further studies revealed that 2b could induce reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, damage mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), block the cells in the G0/G1 phase, and finally promote A2780 cell apoptosis.